How to Cook a Grimm
by VargasREborn
Summary: WE'RE BACK! From the rowdy kitchen of the Baratie to the finest restaurants in Vale there is one man who reigns king of the kitchen. Though to cook a Grimm requires some unconventional preparation. Luckily his past life as a Straw Hat makes him an expert in the unconventional. Reincarnation! Altered History! Not your standard reincarnation. [NOT ABANDONED]
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys, ya miss me? Anyway the premise of this story is simple. What if Jaune wasn't a bumbling fuck up before Beacon? What if he was well, slightly re-incarnated. Now before you kill me for another Naruto thing (dodges the angry fans of Scarlet Maelstrom and Son of Explode) it's not him! It's One Piece! (Dodges the few angry Crimson Monkey fans) and it's Sanji! I'm going to let the story play out for itself. But please, don't ask for harem? I don't have a definite pairing in mind, but if I do make a permanent pairing for Jaune it would be a side thing to the main story. Without further ado, I present the cookbook from the finest chef on The Grand Line and Remnant…**

 **How to Cook A Grimm**

Gold Leaf, a simple restaurant in Vale with a classy name. Not too high end, but still had the air of an upstanding establishment. The aroma of the amazing food wafted out of the kitchen and towards the door, drawing customers in.

"Welcome to the shitty restaurant, may I take your order please?" A teenager in a waiter's uniform asked. He had short, shaggy blonde hair that lazily hung over his left eye. An un lit cigarette lazily hung from his lips. However his most apparent feature was the slight curl of his eyebrows, something he could never escape.

"Excuse me?" The man sitting at the table asked, shocked that a waiter would be so crass.

"You're excused, I really only care for the lady's order." The blonde said with an aloof smile, he then darted over to the other side of the table, "Hello mademoiselle, my name is Jaune and I will be your waiter, and chef for the evening." Jaune said with a bow and a smile. "May I suggest the tuna tartar? We just got it, fresh from Menagerie today. And I must say it goes quite well with the chardonnay you are having." Jaune looked at the couple, seeing the grimace at the mention of Menagerie. He had all he needed to know now.

"I think we'll need to look at the menu for a bit longer." The woman said with a fake smile. Jaune nodded before making his way back to the kitchen. He passed by the head chef and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Make sure to use our… _finest_ ingredients for the lovely opinionated couple over there." Jaune said to his superior as he pointed at the table he was just at. "I'm going out for a smoke."

"You can't take smoke breaks whenever you want, String Bean!" The chef called after him, though Jaune was already outside. The older man shook his head before returning to his work, grumbling to himself all the while.

The young man stared up at the broken moon in the sky for a moment before lighting the cigarette in his mouth. "Still dunno how that happened… Ch, probably something stupid Luffy did." Jaune muttered to himself, a somber smile on his face. He had been asking himself that question from the moment those memories came to him. It was confusing, and the shock of the influx of memories had sent him into a coma for a few months. He missed his old life, but he had no regrets as to how it ended. His captain had to live on, to find their dreams in his stead. Though, Jaune sighed sadly he would miss Pudding. The girl had quickly grown attached to him during the Big Mom affair, too bad that wasn't enough to save them from the Emperor's wrath. Jaune took another drag from the cigarette, his thoughts wandered to the others, besides the shitty swordsman. The beautiful Nami-swan, the childish reindeer doctor, even his brother in perverted arms Brook, though he would never admit he found his skull jokes funny. Hell he even found himself missi- _BANG!_

The sound of gunshots drew his attention, he peered out the alleyway and saw a girl in a red cloak fighting against a group of thugs. Jaune sighed, more of Junior's grunts. Did they ever learn? He put his lighter in his pocket and cracked his neck before kicking off the ground and disappearing. Shave had been one of the first techniques he drilled into his body, along with Moonwalk and Paper Arts. His Haki… Still working on that. However Jaune knew that he wouldn't need it. Hell he wouldn't even need Diable Jambe.

"Who-"

"Name's Jaune, madam." Jaune said with a smirk, "I couldn't help but see that you boys were ganging up on this girl. Not to say she can't take care of herself, but that's just disgraceful. If it's going to take 12 guys to fight a single girl, at least win." He took another drag of his cigarette before flicking it at one of the grunts, "Or just get your ass handed to you on a silver platter, 5 course meal. courtesy of the Crap Café." And then the violence resumed. Jaune easily dodged the, admittedly slow, sword and club strikes from the grunts with ease. "Côtelette!" Jaune shouted as he dropped down into a one-handed handstand position, and kicked the grunt in the ribs, knocking him to the ground. Jaune then stood up and dusted his hands before using Shave to blur towards his next target and deliver a brutal kick to his side. This process continued, along with the red hood wearing girl quickly cutting down her opponents with her scythe. An impressive weapon, Jaune had to admit. While he himself would never use his hands to cause harm, he could respect the craftsmanship.

"Seriously? What did I hire you guys for?" The slightly whiny, but cocky voice of the red haired leader of the grunts made himself known. The man wore a simple white button down shirt with the top two buttons undone, white pants and a white suit jacket. The man then turned his gaze to Jaune, "You're not too bright are you kid? You ever hear the saying don't bring a knife to a gunfight? It also applies to just bringing a couple of fancy kicks."

"A chef doesn't dirty his hands with blood." Jaune replied lazily, lighting another cigarette.

"You're a bit young to be smoking those, ain'tcha?" The man asked as he lit his own cigar. A puff of smoke exited his mouth.

"I don't want to hear that from you. Shitty crook" Jaune said, suppressing a shudder. White clothes and cigars reminded him too much of Vice Admiral Smoker. Jaune kicked off the ground, attempting to lop the man's head off with a single kick. However he was impeded by the man's arm blocking the kick, and bruising the bones in his leg. Was it his imagination or did the man's neck become pitch black for a second? Nah, no way. He was just imagining things.

"Hm, fast too. Y'said you were a chef right? Must be useful for runnin' round the kitchen all day." The man said with a smirk as he pushed Jaune back.

"Who are you?" Jaune asked, his leg may be injured but he'd be damned if that would stop him. He may need to use those hellish memories after all.

"You must live under a rock, kid. The name's Roman Torchwick." Roman said with a cheesier grin as he flicked the ash off his cigar and raised his cane, "And for the record I'm not a shitty crook. I'm the _best damn crook_ you'll ever meet." And then Roman fired, forcing Jaune to dodge. In the next second he was gone, already climbing up the ladder of a fire escape in one of the adjacent alleyways. The girl went over to the shopkeeper, who was cowering behind some of the rubble.

"Will you be ok if we go after him?" She asked, a smile on her face. The elderly man nodded and the girl took off.

"What a night." Jaune said with a smirk as he kicked off the ground using Sky Walk to reach the new battlefield. Truthfully, _just_ being a chef was grating at him. He wanted to fight, it was in his nature as a Strawhat. The rowdiest bunch of misfits on the Grand Line, the most powerful crew of Super Rookies… No it went beyond a simple want. He _needed_ to fight, to cut loose.

Roman nearly gaped when he watched the blonde practically fly up to where they were standing, though he quickly steeled his gaze as he fired a few more shots from his weapon. The girl deflected them with ease, spinning her scythe in a way that reminded Roman of another hunter he crossed paths with before. The thief sped towards the girl and whipped his cane at her feet, knocking her over. Roman then ran towards the blonde, if he dare say the greater threat. The force of his kick was really something.

"You bastard!" Jaune shouted, his cigarette incinerated by the flames his body was now producing. "Diable Jamble!" The blonde's legs glowed with white hot flames, "Premier Hachis!" He leapt several feet off the ground before kicking incredibly fast at Roman, however the experienced fighter dodged with practiced ease. The thief backpedaled until he was near the girl.

"Easy curly." Roman said with a chuckle as he pointed his cane at the downed scythe wielder. "Don't want to have my finger slip, do we?"

"Bastard," Jaune spat.

"I'd ask how you knew that, but it's a common insult so I can't blame you." Roman said with a mirthful grin, he cocked his head to the side before dodging. And not a moment too soon, as huge chunks of rock were flung at him. Floating down on a Sigyl was a blonde _goddess_ if Jaune said so himself. She seemed to be the one who defended the girl.

"Torchwick." The blonde said, her voice dripping with venom.

"Goodtits! Nice to see you again." Roman said with a strained smile. The sound of a helicopter drew his attention, causing him to grin full force. "She's late again…" Roman said to himself before firing a few shots at the blonde woman, forcing her to wave her riding crop around to summon more chunks of concrete to defend with. Roman then took the liberty of tossing a fire dust grenade before making a break for the other end of the roof. He didn't expect for the blonde to be neck and neck with him. Oh who was he kidding? Of course he was. Roman gulped as he jumped off the edge of the roof, just in time to land in the chopper.

"You're not getting away!" Jaune shouted, seemingly flying towards the helicopter. The woman in the cockpit looked over to Roman and smirked. Her amber eyes filled with mirth as she stood and walked over to the door.

"He's an… Energetic one." The woman said before firing at the blonde, impeding his pursuit. The helicopter then took off, leaving him behind. Jaune landed back on an adjacent rooftop, fully prepared to pursue when the blonde woman stopped him by putting her arm out in front of him.

" _And_ just what are you two children doing?" The woman asked, her icy glare boring into the soul of Jaune. For the first time since he was given a second chance at life, Jaune felt true fear.

A half hour car ride in the back of a police car and another hour or so of sitting in the interrogation room with only the redhead girl as company. Her name was Ruby, fitting. The exuberant 15 year old girl had dreams of being a Huntress, a defender of humanity. Jaune knew very well what they were, for a while he considered it, however he could not afford to attend one of the combat schools so that he could enter one of the main academies like Beacon.

Jaune chuckled to himself, Jeff was going to be pissed. some things stayed similar in his new life. His mentor was Jeff Holchis. Former Huntsman and head chef of the Atlas Specialists before losing his arm up to the elbow saving someone from an Alpha Beowolf. He then had to relearn all of his skill with a single hand, saying that a machine hand was not the same for cooking, even if it was his own. The man had taken Jaune in after he found out the blonde was living alone. The man had way too many similarities to Zeff, however it made Jaune happy to have some connection to his old life. He was drawn out of his thoughts by the sound of the blonde's riding crop slapping against her open palm.

"-And a slap on the wrist," Was all he caught from the blonde's little rant. It was jarring really, someone in an authoritative position looking out for his wellbeing instead of working against it. It was also quite constricting, he noted. While he could turn to a life of piracy in this life as he did before, pirates weren't the same as they were back then either. Luffy would be ashamed. "However, there is someone who wishes to speak with the two of you."

"Please tell me it's not the parole officer. I really don't need one of them bugging me." Jaune muttered. However his words fell on deaf ears as a new man walked into the room. The man's eyes lit up a bit upon seeing the two sitting in front of him, however he quickly steeled his gaze as to not give any emotional tells.

"Ruby Rose… You have silver eyes." Well that was a weird introduction, not even saying his name before talking about a girl's eyes. Jaune had to say, ballsy… And a little creepy, considering the age difference. Before Jaune could insult the shitty-glasses, the man turned his gaze to Jaune.

"Jaune Arc… Impressive kicking technique. I was not aware the Arcs had such a powerful child. Tell me, what is the name of your fighting style?"

Feeling that no harm could come from answering such a simple question, "Black Leg Style. Why?"

The man's eyes widened and Jaune was sure he saw him smile briefly before steeling his expression, "No reason, I'm just curious."

"You seem to already know our names, but I don't have a clue who you are, shitty old man." Jaune said, his hand twitching towards his pocket for a smoke. He couldn't put his finger on it, but something about that man made him anxious.

"Ah yes, my name is Professor Ozpin. Head of Beacon Academy." The man said without missing a beat. "Would you two like to attend my school?"

"Yes!" Ruby answered quickly, stars in her eyes. Though Jaune did not answer. He felt a strange sense of deja vu. He idly wondered if Ozpin would refuse his refusal if he did not choose to attend, however he knew that Ozpin was different from Luffy. This ship would set sail regardless if he said no, this was his only shot.

"You got it." Jaune said with a smirk.

Jaune tapped his foot impatiently as he stood in the crowd of new students on the Bullhead. It was packed full, though he could not find Ruby for the life of him. It didn't help that every passing pretty girl distracted him, but he wanted to at least find someone he knew. Not to mention he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched, though he could never find any indication as to who was watching him. Eventually he gave up and just tried to ignore the feeling. He saw a hologram of the woman from the night before, Goodwitch, telling them about Beacon, however he was not listening to what she had to say.

"Jaune!" Ruby's familiar voice caught his attention and the blonde was greeted with the sight of a red blur barreling into him. Trailing behind her was a blonde whose figure reminded him of Nami.

"So this is the knight in shining armor. Thanks for looking out for my little sister." The blonde said with a smirk and a flirtatious wink, "The name's Yang by the way."

"My pleasure," Jaune said with a lighthearted smile on his face. Growing up with seven sisters helped to… curb his attitude he had last time. The way he acted on the Grand Line would have him running from a mob if he tried the same on Remnant. One of the differences between this life and the last he supposed. However he was surprised when Yang leaned in and whispered in a husky tone into his ear,

"Come by later and I'll show you a real _Yangin'_ time." The blonde bombshell's breath was hot on Jaune's skin, screw his inhibitions! The blonde male then promptly started grinning profusely as his eyes seemed to take the shape of hearts. His body began to shake before he rocketed off… Propelled by blood coming from his nose. The two sisters could only look on in wonder, amazement and a hint of fear for their sanity as he was sent flying away into the crowd of students.

"W…what?" The younger of the two sisters asked the elder. Who at first was smirking at the sight, but now had to explain to her younger sister.

"I don't even know Ruby, I don't even know." Yang said while shaking her head, "Guess he couldn't _Yang_ -nope.. Can't come up with a pun for this." She groaned, that was the worst part. Not the blood on her boots, that was kind of normal. Luckily for them the airship was coming to a landing, the groaning sound of the landing gear coming out signified that. The two girls walked off the ship, leaving the bloody nosed blonde male on his own.

"What a girl," He murmured before fading into unconsciousness.

Last he had remembered, there had a been a blonde bombshell standing in front of him. So why was he now on grass, looking at a strange orange haired girl poking him with her _hammer_ of all things, and a man with black hair and a pink streak somewhat trying to get her to stop.

"Nora! He's awake." The male said before reaching his arm out. "Lie Ren," he said. Jaune nodded groggily and took the hand, pulling himself to his feet.

"Jaune… Arc." He said the last name, albeit a bit slower. A force of habit from his old life, he supposed. Ever since he escaped that fateful day in East Blue he refused his last name. The mononym Sanji stuck, no Sanji Vinsmoke, simply Sanji.

"So what were you doing passed out?" Nora asked, causing Jaune to blush in embarrassment and sputter out a quick lie. Luckily for him, the question was quickly forgotten in wake of the sound of an explosion going off not too far away from where they stood. Jaune slipped away in the confusion to check on what had happened. To his surprise it was none other than Ruby who stood in the center of what appeared to be the dust warzone. Nearby was a white themed girl who was yelling at the confused younger girl. The white haired girl was beautiful, though

"Easy snow angel, I'm sure she didn't mean it." Jaune said as he walked over, trying to ease the situation. That, was entirely the wrong decision, as Jaune soon realized.

"Didn't mean it? Well I'm sure that would have been a great explanation if we were blown off this cliff!" The white haired girl fumed.

"I'm sorry," Ruby blurted out, the younger girl obviously was not prepared for the bombardment of accusations, or the explosion. She was then perplexed when a pamphlet was then shoved in her face.

"If you're truly sorry you can read this thoroughly and never talk to me again." The girl said with a huff.

"Yeesh, what an ice princess." Ruby muttered, hoping the angry older girl didn't hear her. Her hopes were unfounded as the white haired girl turned around.

"Heiress, actually."

"Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company are you not?" A calm voice asked. The three looked to the speaker and saw a girl their age, barring Ruby, with long straight black hair that was pushed back by a black bow. She wore a black and white top with black pants and carried a sword on her waist and an old looking tome in her hand.

"Thank you! Someone here actually-"

"The very same company responsible for countless cases of mistreatment of Faunus employees?" The girl asked while cocking her head to the side slightly. And just like that Jaune's minor attraction to the girl was gone completely. Weiss stormed off after that, the black haired girl left as well. It was soon back to only Jaune and Ruby.

"So do you know where to go?" Ruby asked him, a hopeful expression on her young face. If only he had his Haki unlocked in this life he would have been able to find the others with ease. Luckily for him, Ren and Nora had been walking past.

"Nora~" Jaune spun and waved at her, "Do you know the way to the welcome speech?" To which the girl responded with a happy nod and pointed at the direction of the main building.

"We were heading there right now, would you like to come with us?" Red asked politely.

"Friends of yours?" Ruby asked, trying to hide a little behind the tall blonde.

"Yeah, they found me after uh…" Jaune pulled at his collar a bit, chuckling sheepishly, "Nevermind, let's try not to be late right?"

"Right, I gotta find Yang." Ruby said with a nod, not noticing Jaune get hearts in his eyes at the mention of Yang. The group continued walking, and Jaune learned one thing. He had forever earned a customer/Luffy level inhaler of his food named Nora, provided he made pancakes.

"You gotta have a cook off with Ren! Ooh it'll be great! I'll get to taste both, and eat all the pancakes and it'll be AMAZING!" Nora said while moving around Ren and Jaune.

"Sorry abou-"

"Don't worry about it," Jaune said with a small smile on his face, "I… used to have a friend a lot like her." Ren then smiled as well.

"Let me guess,"

"Getting woken up at all hours by exclamations of 'meat' or in your case pancakes? Exactly." Jaune said with a grin, finally someone who knew his struggle. Though it was not quite as bad, seeing as Nora was a woman while shitty-rubber was just an insatiable black hole.

Ren sighed, "But they really brighten up the world." He didn't seem to notice the smile on Jaune's face began to seem a bit forced. The conversation dropped into a comfortable silence after that as the group neared the assembly hall. Ruby immediately went off in the direction of Yang, or at least who she assumed was Yang by the hair. Jaune let her go off to talk to her sister, he simply began to wander around the crowd. Though he was mostly checking out girls he was also looking at the weapons of each of the students, or the ones who had them with them. Seriously, even by his standards some of these weapons were crazy. And this was coming from the man who witnessed BF-38 otherwise known as Franky Shogun in action. He noticed the black haired girl from earlier, she seemed to have a book in her hand but Jaune could not see the cover. For some reason she looked familiar, though for the life of him he couldn't figure out noticed his gaze and raised an eyebrow as if asking why he was looking at her. Jaune walked over, pretending he was simply checking her out like he would any other girl.

"Hello, mademoiselle my name is Jaune Arc, may I ask your name?" The suit wearing blonde asked.

"… Blake," The girl said simply, eying the blonde up and down. She too seemed to see the connection, "Might I ask you a question? I don't see a weapon on you. That isn't traditional of combat schools, who trained you?"

"A shitty old man, that's who." Jaune grunted, "His name was Red-"

"- Leg Zeff, owner of Baratie." Blake finished for him, a wide grin on her face. "I would say more, but that'd be too easy, goodbye _Mr. Chef_." Blake said before disappearing into the crowd of students.

Jaune simply stood there, a stunned look on his face. He felt like a part of him, that was always missing was starting to come together. Something that had been missing for _too damn long!_ Only one person ever called him Mr. Chef, and was an expert in secrecy. How could he forget? It felt like just yesterday when they stood, facing the full might of the world's forces just to get her back. He was so entranced in the fact that one of his, no a member of his _true_ family was still alive, that it took Ruby waving her arms in front of him like a miniature black and red windmill to get his attention.

"Sorry Ruby, what can I do for you mademoiselle?" Jaune asked politely, not caring about the menacing aura coming from Yang.

 _"THAT'S MY 15 YEAR OLD SISTER."_ The fiery blonde growled at her male counterpart.

"Easy," Jaune said in a placating manner, putting his hands out in to show he meant no harm. "I'm a chef, remember? I actually enjoy making food for others. As long as someone is hungry, I'll feed them. Then worry about the consequences." Jaune said, almost reverently of the words. After all they were the ones he lived by once, and would continue to even if Jaune Arc never knew starvation like Sanji did. His past life's sheer reverence of

"Oh," The flaming aura completely faded from Yang, "You mind cooking some for me too? I'm sure I can make it worth your time."

"OF COURSE!" Jaune exclaimed with hearts in his eyes. Though his love hurricane was completely ignored by Yang as her sister was busy telling her about blowing up. Jaune grinned as Weiss came over to yell at the younger girl once more. She was a haughty princess that's for sure, but her attitude almost reminded him of Nami, at least in the way she yelled. Though even that was cut short by the sound of Ozpin tapping the microphone.

"I'll... keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge." Jaune nodded along half heartedly, not quite paying attention to him and instead trying to find a black bow within the sea of people.

"- to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction." Jaune's eyes shot to the professor. The words striking a chord in him. He was right after all, he did need purpose. Something to put his talents as a fighter towards. "You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step." Ozpin paced a little after that, allowing the words of his speech to sink in. "Tonight you shall all be staying in the auditorium, it would behoove you to rest well before the entrance exam tomorrow."

After the speech ended, Jaune began his search for his crew mate, or well former crew mate? No. He couldn't allow himself to think like that. The Straw Hat bond lasts even through time. He was sure of that, though the trail of cigarette butts behind him would tell any onlooker otherwise. He wandered into the courtyard, seeing that the sun had begun to set he sighed and decided to head to the area they would be staying. To his shock, and annoyance he saw Blake talking to Ruby and Yang. Though the girl seemed quite annoyed this time, Jaune couldn't tell if it was an act to get them away now that he was there or not. After all, she might still have her Devil Fruit or accessed Haki in this lifetime. Though it was proven moot when Weiss came over, yelling about how they were being too loud for her to sleep. The last thing he saw before Blake blew out the lamp was her amber eyes staring at him with mirth. He'd just have to confront her tomorrow, for now sleep. He could confront her after the exam, after all they went to the same school.

Ozpin sighed as he walked into his clocktower office. He ran a hand through his mess of silver hair before sighing and plopping down into his desk chair. He peered at the cold coffee mug, contemplating to take a sip of caffeinated goodness or not. He decided not to, and then tapped 3 times in a strange rhythm on his desk. _klunk_ and a secret compartment dropped down. In it were old and tattered sheets of paper, only barely kept together through the passage of time. The headmaster of beacon reached into the compartment and pulled out two of the sheets, lying them on the table.

 **Wanted ONLY Alive: 'Black Leg' Sanji 177,000,000**

He chuckled at the goofy love eyes that the curly eyebrow'd cook had in that picture. It had been a while since he looked at these.

"So the pieces are coming together." Ozpin muttered, "I suppose it would be too soon to inform James of this development, he'd be frothing at the mouth." He peered at the other paper on the desk, the name was etched into the hearts of all who lived in the Pirate Era. One that was given to a young girl, for destroying an entire Buster Call worth of ships at age 8. _"Nico Robin… Vinsmoke Sanji. It must be some divine being's sense of humor, that the Devil Child and a Germa are our greatest hopes._

 **AAAAAND That's a wrap. So what did you guys think? Love it? Hate it? Anyway this is coupled with my other new story that will be released later in the week if work permits it.**

 **Ok enough of the seriousness, and I'll explain some basic stuff about this now that you made it through the chapter. Yes Devil Fruits are a part of this story, however in this story eating one makes the Devil Fruit ability supersede the semblance unless there are special conditions met (which will be revealed later). No the Devil Fruit users are not born with the ability, meaning that just like with Haki it's a gamble of if they'll have it or not. I never understood why in reincarnation fits that would be the case**

 **Also you guys are welcome to guess who Oz is. I changed his backstory up because I needed to and because I just don't like the whole "Like minded individuals" thing. Oscar is a kid, how is he like Ozpin at all until the merge happens? Anyway, the reason I chose Sanji to be Jaune? Well they're blonde, but the reason I picked Sanji over anyone else is that his character allows for a unique experience. He's a gentleman to a fault and will serve food to anyone who is hungry thanks to his past life as Sanji. These traits will in fact be very important in the story. However his Sanji-ness (hitting on every woman ever) will be toned down as the cultural norms in Remnant differ from his time as a pirate. Jaune is technically OOC for both him and Sanji, but that's because I'm attempting to merge the two personalities.**

 **Anyway that's all for today folks. I'll try to have another chapter ready in two weeks, no promises though. I just actually got fully hired today (had to make it through training) so work'll take up a lot of my time… Anyway y'all know what to do. Peace fools! *puts fingers on forehead and disappears***


	2. Chapter 2

**Welcome to Chapter 2 of the cookbook. I'm happy to see the support so far and I wanted keep going. Especially since the entrance exam is where I get to have Jaune and everyone show off. Oh and by the way, for a while it may seem like everyone's giving Weiss shit, well yeah kinda. Jaune again has his morals and will just not give her the time of day until she changes her attitude, Blake will be much the same. Also I just don't see anyone being that nice to someone like her, at least until after she starts making an effort to change. Also someone brought this up in a review but I just wanted to say that no Luffy is not Ozpin or Ruby. Not everyone will be coming back, hell the only other Strawhat I have planned to appear won't come until the end of Vol1. I have a fourth in reserve in case I can fit him, but really I don't want the Straw Hats to take over the RWBY dynamic, merely change it up. Like honestly I like some of the RWBY characters and I want to explore them more. Replacing everyone with a Strawhat or character I like would be an injustice to the characters whose time would be snuffed by the others. For example, Lucci-Ren was something I was considering before Robin-Blake but decided against it because Sanji had no relations to Lucci besides him being the guy who kidnapped Robin. Every character who is reincarnated is reincarnated to add to the plot, not to fill Remnant with god tier characters. Trust me, the Queen and the White Fang have some tricks**

Jaune groaned as he walked out of the dining hall. The chefs at Beacon refused to let him use the kitchen, he was so tempted to kick them out so he could make some real food. He decided against it, fighting with the staff on day 2 was not on the menu for this chef. For now scrambled eggs, sausage and bacon would have to do. It would hold him over until later at the very least. He saw a few familiar faces, namely Nora carrying an absolutely massive stack of pancakes with Red following behind as to make sure none of them fell off. _"So that's where all the pancakes went, she really has a Luffy-meat grade appetite for those."_ The blonde mused to himself while chuckling. He also saw Yang, who winked at him again though he did not react this time to her disappointment. He made his way to the locker room, where he saw Weiss talking with a beautiful red haired woman. Not red like Nami-swan, but actual blood red. In her own way it was just as pretty, like a flame.

"Ugh, _him_." Weiss scowled, "What do you want, smokestack? Matter of fact are you even allowed to have those cancer sticks here?" She asked, pointing at the unlit cig hanging loosely from his mouth.

"Valean Law saws 18's the legal age, lucky for me I turned it last month." Jaune lied smoothly, yes he was still 17 but she didn't need to know. Plus he hand rolled them most of the time since he used the good tobacco from Jeff's stash. "But I'm just here to pick up my shoes. Do you or the beauty next to you know where locker 636 is?"

"Do you know who you are speaking to?" Weiss asked with an eye roll.

"Uh, you and this beautiful redhead who seems far more pleasant?" Jaune asked, his swirly eyebrow raised as he asked the question. He then turned to the redhead, and with a flourish he bowed, "Sorry for not introducing myself sooner, my name is Jaune Arc. And you are?" He asked, swiftly pocketing the cigarette for later. The girl giggled a bit, however Weiss was thoroughly unamused.

"This is Pyrrha Nikos, 5 time champion of the Mistral Regional Tournament."

"Impressive." Jaune noted, "Still not ringing any bells." He said with an amused look on his face. The white haired girl fumed at his response before storming off, muttering something about uncultured blondes. He shrugged before grinning at Pyrrha who smiled back in response. The girl then looked over her shoulder, blushed and stepped out of the way revealing she was standing in front of his locker. Jaune smiled before putting in his combo and opening it, retrieving a pair of leather shoes with dull grayish blue bottoms.

"You don't use a weapon?" Pyrrha asked

"Pyrrha, let me tell you something. I spent two years in _hell_. I _am_ a weapon." Jaune said, at first with a smile before switching to a fully emotionless tone. Hell Memories was a powerful tool for now, Haki was unavailable so Diablo Jambe took a bit more time to set up. Either way, he could still kick an Alpha Beowulf's head off so what did it matter?

"Well Mr. Weapon, have you given any thought to who's team you'll be on?"

"Hm, didn't really think about the teams…" Jaune muttered, though he wanted to work with Blake it would simply be un-gentlemanly to say that he wanted to be on a team with another girl. Especially when the reason was completely unrelated to his normal antics.

"Well I wouldn't be opposed to being placed on a team with you either." The redhead said with a warm smile before leaving the locker room, "I hope that you do well."

"Same to you Pyrrha," Jaune said, responding to both statements. He then made his way to the cliffs where they were to begin their entrance exam. Apparently he missed the first part, if the way Goodwitch was glaring at him was any indication.

"You will be sent into the Emerald Forest to collect relics. Do not hesitate to destroy anything in your path." Ozpin said, "Oh and the first person you make eye contact with will be your partner for the next four years, so do try to land near someone you work well with." Queue the confused groans and explicative from the students. Jaune didn't particularly care, if he ended up with Blake she would find him, not the other way around. "Finally this is your choice. You can either make your own landing strategy after being launched into the forest…" He said, right as Nora was launched into the forest, laughing giddily as she flew. "Or you can make your own landing strategy after _I_ launch you into the forest." He said, an uncharacteristically menacing grin present on his face. No student complained after that.

Jaune tensed his legs as he felt the platform sink a little in preparation for launch. As he careened through the air he kicked with great force to reach even higher altitudes. Seeing Ruby in the sky with him, he decided to wink and grin at her. However he then winced as the girl, while reacting caught a face full of bird.

"Birdie no!" Jaune turned around after that, kicking off the air again to propel him towards the ground and away from that awkward situation. He saw an Ursa in a clearing and angled himself just right so that he kicked it in the head, and his momentum sent it skidding on the ground all the way into a tree. Jaune rolled out of the kick before the collision and looked at his handywork. Seeing as the Grimm was still there and not a mass of black smoke, Jaune kicked it in the head a few more times for good measure. It then dissolved like a good fodder Grimm. Seeing as he had a moment of respite, Jaune lit his first cigarette of the day. Savoring the nicotine rush that came with the first inhale. The blonde then began walking on the clearest path, not wanting to dirty his suit too much in the foliage.

—

Blake's descent was much less forceful than Jaune's, relying on her grace and agility to land safely in the trees and hop to loose momentum. She then stuck her blade out into one of the trees to stop herself. "Hmm… Should I let the chips fall where they may, or find Mr. Chef?" The ravenette mused to herself. _K-krak!_ The sound of gunfire drew Blake's attention. "Let them fall where they may, I suppose." She said with a shrug before hopping off the treetops to where she saw the blonde, the female not Jaune. Yang, she believed, was busy murdering a herd of Grimm. Oh look at that, one was coming up behind her soon to be partner. That would not do, "Ocho Fleur: Clutch!" Blake called out, crossing her arms in front of herself. In an instant 8 eight arms appeared on the Ursa that was creeping up on Yang, and promptly suplexed it, breaking its spine.

"Thanks for the save," Yang said, looking up at her savior. "So guess we're partners then?"

"I suppose." Blake said, hopping down into the clearing.

"So your semblance is growing those hands or something?" Yang asked

"… Or something."

—

Pyrrha was on a hunt. Not for the relics, but for a teammate. Jaune had no idea who she was. And that was perfect. He didn't even care that she was a tournament winner, which should have been a shot to her pride as a warrior. Instead it made her happy there was a single person who didn't look at her with those spiteful, greedy, lustful looks. Jaune was just, real. She could smell tobacco smoke, and just regular smoke. Was there a fire? Did he specialize in fire dust?

 _"Anti-Manner Kick Course!"_ Another burst of flames could be seen through the foliage. Pyrrha was extremely interested in how he fought now. She ducked under a few tree branches and had to vault over at least 5 fallen trunks in her trek to find Jaune. What she found was truly a sight to behold. The suit wearing blonde's hair seemed to rise up, his eyes were practically balls of fire. And his legs were coated in flames, not to mention the entire flaming aura that surrounded him. With a sigh, his flames disappeared and Jaune smirked, letting his gaze fall on Pyrrha. "Would you look at that we're partners."

"Indeed we are, I'll be in your care."

"OF COURSE PYRRHA-SWAN! YOUR KNIGHT WILL PROTECT YOU FROM ANYTHING!" Let it be known that Jaune's love-hurricane tendencies of his past life were not forgotten. Though he quickly collected himself, luckily the girl seemed to think it was funny, or cute. Either way he wasn't flat out getting rejected yet so it wasn't _that_ bad.

"So was that your semblance? Those flames?"

"Heh, no. I actually don't even have my aura unlocked." Jaune said with an uneasy look on his face, "Look those flames… Yeah let's just not bring them up. It's better for everyone." He said, pushing ahead. However he was stopped by Pyrrha who grabbed his wrist suddenly. Her eyes narrowed.

"You mean to tell me, you entered a combat school. One of the most prestigious ones I might add, without even having your aura unlocked?" The girl breathed, part of her was amazed at his sheer strength and the other part was equally amazed with his monumental stupidity.

"Yep." Jaune said, popping the 'p' as he said it. "I don't see what the problem is, none of these shitty Grimm are really that strong."

"What if you get hurt?"

"… I wait for the injury to heal?" Jaune responded, not sure how to react to her questioning. However he was then swiftly smacked upside the head, with an armored fist. Ow.

"That's… ugh, let me just unlock your aura for you." Pyrrha said with a sigh. Why did her partner have to be so irresponsible?

"Maybe later." Jaune said, "From the sound of it, it would use up some of your own aura. I'm fine the way I am for now. I'd hate for you to get injured because of that."

"I'm the one who should be worried about you getting injured." Pyrrha said, before shaking her head and following after Jaune. The two continued on their walk in a semi-awkward silence. Pyrrha wanted to try breaking the silence, but with what?

"So," Jaune said, saving her from her thoughts. "How do you fight? You saw the end of my fight, but I have no idea what you can do."

"Well I have my shield, Akoúo̱, and my sword Miló." She said, pulling the sword out for Jaune to see. It seems to have multiple parts, far more than necessary for a simple sword. Living on a ship with one of the greatest swordsmen, grudgingly he would admit that the moss head was one but never aloud, taught him a little about swords. Seeing his questioning look, Pyrrha pressed a button on the sword, causing it to transform into a spear form. "It also is a rifle." She said with a smile, pressing another button and having it shift to rifle form. She then got into position and with a resounding crack, fired her gun. Jaune looked at her questioningly before turning his gaze ahead to see the Grimm that she just shot steadily dissolving.

"…Nice." Jaune commented dumbly. The girl was strong for sure, hell he'd place her on Mosshead's level before he picked up Yubashiri and Kitetsu. Which, to be comparable to any of the stronger members of the Strawhats was a feat in of itself, they weren't called Super Rookies for no reason.

"Thank you." The redhead beamed, "So I'm going to guess you don't have any idea where the relic is?"

"Well, not really." Jaune sagged his shoulders as he said that, "But there seem to be more Grimm here than where I started so I think we're getting close." He said as they pushed through a few more trees, making it to another clearing. This one leading straight into the mouth of a cave. He looked to his partner and grinned, "I think I might have found it." She simply gestured for the blonde to lead on, which he did happily.

—

Ruby Rose was not in fact having a good time. First she thought the exam would be all fighting, something she was perfectly fine with. Better than fine, she would have preferred that. But _nooo_ she had to work with a team, and worse yet she couldn't pick Jaune or Yang as her teammate. Instead she was stuck with the crabby white haired girl from the day before who wouldn't stop complaining about being partnered with her. Ruby was a kind soul, but one more comment and Crescent Rose would be getting very intimate with her. Seriously the girl had no idea how to fight against Grimm. Going on about stances and steps, bah! If you can't adapt you die. Simple as that. And the girl called her overconfident.

"Do you even know where we're going?" The normally peppy silver eyed girl asked in an exasperated tone.

"Of course I do!" Weiss yelled back, flailing her arms in the air in frustration. "it's uh… That way!"

"Just admit we're lost." Ruby said with a sigh, "It's not like you're perfect or something."

"I'm not perfect, not yet. I'm still head and shoulders above you though." Weiss said with a huff before walking off in her chosen direction.

Ruby sighed dejectedly and followed behind, "You don't even know me…"

—

Blake walked along the trail to the temple, it was quite easy to find when you had countless eyes scanning the forest. Lining the trees were various Grimm being held in painful joint locks. She would either have the limbs snap their necks, break their spines, or simply allow Yang to fire a good round into their skulls. Yang ran ahead to check the temple for a large enemy. It made sense, as Yang was more suited as a frontline fighter. Speaking of front line fighters, she briefly wondered how Sanj-no Jaune was doing. It's not like he was Zoro, perhaps he already found a relic?

"Hey you think these are the relics?" Yang asked, pointing to a collection of chess pieces. Blake shrugged.

"Probably."

"Ooh well I'm taking the horsey." Yang said with a grin.

—

"Jaune?"

"Pyrrha, do not say it."

"I told you so." The redhead said in deadpan as they jumped away from each other to dodge another stinger strike from the Deathstalker chasing them. Turns out the relic was not in fact in the cave with danger markings on it. Who would have thought? The worst part was the stupid thing snuffed out Jaune's cigarette with it's first strike. Now they were on the run, hoping to find a clearing so Jaune could actually cut loose on the stupid thing. Another claw swipe that he jumped over, Pyrrha rolled to the side before continuing her dash. Jaune kicked the air and rocketed upwards using Sky Walk. He then kicked again to position himself next to Pyrrha with his hand outstretched.

"Grab on!" He called out. She nodded and grabbed hold of his hand. Jaune then pulled her into his arms, princess carry style and kicked higher into the air, just above the tree line to find a clearing to fight this thing. Jaune, through the adrenaline rush did not notice the blush that the redhead in his arms was sporting. Seeing as he found it he kicked again, sending him towards a stone temple. He skidded to a stop, kicking up dust behind him. "You ok, Pyrrha-swan?"

"Y-yes I'm fine. You can let me down now." The redhead said. Jaune nodded with a smile and let her down gently. The two then looked at Blake and Yang.

"Blake."

"Mr. Chef." The black haired woman said with a curtsy. Jaune felt his eye twitch, oh damn now he knew she was screwing with him last night.

"You two know each other?" Yang asked as she walked over. "She your ex or something, lover boy?"

"Or something." The two answered in unison. Blake chuckled while Jaune scowled after. Their attention was drawn to gleeful shouts and whoops coming from the forest. Jaune lowered his center of gravity in preparation to kick off the ground while Blake crossed her arms. Yang dropped into her fighting position and with her gauntlets clicking into place. Pyrrha simply hung behind the group, Miló ready in its rifle form. To their relief it was another huntsman in training, to their horror it was Nora. Nora riding an Ursa like a horse, cackling as it drove itself into the ground.

"Aww I broke it. Hey Ren! Think you can find me another Ursa to ride?"

"Nora… Please slow down." Ren wheezed as he caught up to her.

"Can't live without em, eh?" Jaune called out to Ren, a smirk on his face. Red simply shot him the middle finger in response as he fought to catch his breath. While Ren stood hunched over, Nora skipped over to the relics and picked up the gold rook.

"I'l the queen of the castle! I'm the queen of the castle!" Nora crowed. Absently, Blake looked up at the sky and her eyes quickly widened.

"Ah Yang, the girl in red riding on a Nevermore up there… That is your sister right?" Blake asked, before cocking her head to the side, "No, she just jumped so I guess she isn't riding it any-"

"YAAAAAANG!" Ruby's scream cut Blake off, with a sigh. The black haired girl raised her arms.

"Viente Fleur: Uno Mano!" Blake called out, causing twenty arms to sprout from the ground before forming into one giant arm that snatched Ruby from the air to soften her landing. The scale of the technique shocked all of the Hunstmen in training into shocked silence, barring Jaune who had seen that technique on an even larger scale before. However he now had more questions, such as how she still had her Devil Fruit powers. Or if she found the fruit herself? Maybe it was possible that he could still get the Clear Clear Fruit?

"Whoa!" Ruby cried out put off by the giant hand that prorated out of nowhere. However the hand soon faded into flower petals as it let the silver eyed girl down. She would have questioned Blake about her semblance, if not for one small thing she forgot. Ruby then walked over to the relics and grabbed the knight piece, out of convenience; leaving Pyrrha to grab the other rook piece for her and Jaune.

"HOW COULD YOU LEAVE ME UP HERE!?" Somehow Weiss's voice managed to reach them, even from up on the back of the Nevermore.

"Should… I go get her?" Jaune asked

"Do you want to?" Blake asked in response, "Because my arms are rather tired so I don't think I can." She said while smirking at the blonde. "If I do my control might just slip up."

"Yeah I should save her." Jaune said quickly. Leaving someone Robin clearly didn't like in her _caring_ hands would not be good. Especially when those hands numbered in the hundreds. And seeing as nobody else had the ability to reach her, unless Rokushi techniques became available to the masses which he doubted. "Weiss stay calm!" He called out, before kicking off the ground. And then the air, again and again. To those on the ground it looked like he was flying, and Weiss was inclined to agree. However her amazement only grew when the blonde smokestack's leg burst into flames, "Diable Jambe: Collier Shoot!" He shouted, kicking the powerful Grimm in the neck, sending its head rocking back and throwing Weiss off the bird. However now that it was injured, Jaune could safely grab her and return her to the ground.

"What were you thinking, you… idiot!" Weiss shouted, "What if you didn't catch me in time."

"Ro-Blake would have." Jaune said, jabbing a thumb in the direction of the bow wearing girl. "And besides, as a gentleman I would never let a lady die, not while I can help it."

"Well… Thank you then, I guess." Weiss said, mumbling the first part. Though Jaune still heard her words. The moment was cut short when the Deathstalker that was chasing Jaune and Pyrrha burst through the forest.

"So ah… What do we do?"

"Fight it out?" Jaune asked, a cigarette in his mouth. His eyebrows narrowed as he leaned his head down, giving him a devilish appearance. "I'm feelin' lucky."

"We already have the relics, there's no point in fighting these things." Weiss tried to reason.

"But it'll be fun~" Nora whined. Yang blinked, looking between the pink wearing hammer wielder and the blonde who was a lot stronger than he looked.

"Eh if I go out…" Yang began to say, putting her sunglasses on before finishing her sentence, "I'll go out with a Yang."

"Booo!" Ruby called out, "But, look some of us have to draw the Nevermore away. We're too open here."

"You guys go." Jaune said, "Nora, Ren… Pyrrha-swan I _know_ you want this thing dead as bad as I do so I'm not even going to ask." He began spoke, exhaling a cloud of smoke. "You guys feel like cooking up some scorpion?" Nora grinned in response, transforming her hammer into grenade launcher form. Red simply nodded, while Pyrrha cracked her knuckles before firing the starting round in the Deathstalker's eye." Jaune spun for a single second and his leg was ablaze once more, "Diable Jambe! GO!" He ordered.

"Come on, they will be fine." Blake said, all but dragging her parter to get her mind in gear. Luckily Ruby and Weiss were quick on the uptake and began to follow behind, Ruby even taking the initiative to snipe at the Nevermore, drawing it's attention to them.

"Don't die on us yet, lover boy. You still owe me a meal." Yang called out before running after her team. Jaune however did not hear her as he was in the midst of batting the Deathstalker's stinger away from Ren.

"Shit, it's armor's harder than anything I can kick through for now." Jaune grumbled as he used Hell Memories to re-light his cigarette. He exhaled a cloud of smoke, his eyes stony and the smoke making him look like a raging dragon… Or demon. Pyrrha swept in, cutting at the exposed inky black flesh of the Grimm's limbs. Jaune's eyes widened in realization as he jumped off the Grimm's diamond-like shell and just began delivering vicious flaming kicks to the limbs to blow them apart. Red got the same idea and began cutting with his dagger like weapons (You know what they are but they're hard to describe). The three of them made quick work of the limbs of the scorpion like Grimm, leaving it a writhing shell with a stinger and claws.

"So… Do we kill it?" Nora asked, confused. "Because I wanna kill it."

"Oh we're killing it for sure." Jaune said with a nod, walking over to the Grimm to kick it onto its back so that he could attack the exposed underside. However to his shock the Grimm's eyes simply trained on him and in a trail of a black flame-like substance sprouted new limbs, causing Jaune to jump back lest he get hit by a claw swipe.

"It can regenerate?" Ren asked, "What…"

"It's a rare mutation in some Grimm. As a last ditch effort they can shave years off their lifespan to regrow body parts. It's said to only happen with very powerful Grimm." Pyrrha said with a grimace, "And we _had_ to pick a fight with it."

"Yes Pyrrha-swan, yes! We! Did!" Jaune said, but accentuating the last words with a kick to either parry the Grimm or attempt to attack its limbs. This time it had gotten smarter, always maneuvering so its plated claws were able to block his kicks. Red couldn't seem to get an opening either with his blades and opted to open fire with the SMG portion of his weapons.

—

Up on the cliffs, Ozpin and Goodwitch observed the students down below with her scroll.

"I don't get it. You know how dangerous those two are yet you still let them in." Goodwitch spoke as she looked at the feeds displaying Jaune and Blake.

"You mean from their wanted posters, correct?" Ozpin asked, receiving a nod, "79,000,000 of Nico Robin's was largely unearned. It was placed on her out of misguided fear."

"And the Vinsmoke? You told me of the evils of the Germa during their prime."

"From what I know he had no relations with them from the age of 9 until the incident in Totland. He's a Straw Hat, they may be rough around the edges. But they were good people." Ozpin retorted, sticking his coffee cup out in Goodwitch's face for emphasis. "Besides, we have left the fate of the world in the hands of the Straw Hats before, what's wrong with doing it one more time?"

—

Yang grunted as she narrowly rolled out of the way of a barrage of iron hard feathers. They had the first part of the plan down, get the Nevermore to the cliffs. At least here they could use the terrain to get closer to the airborne opponent. She struck her fist out, firing a round from Ember Celica into the gargantuan bird's maw. It's attention was now firmly on her.

"Triente Fleur: Grab!" Thirty arms sprouted from the Grimm and then restrained its wings and neck, sending it crashing to the ground. It writhed in anger and pain, but mostly anger as it struggled against its bindings. Sweat poured down Blake's forehead as she kept her trembling arms crossed. "Yang, hurry!" With a nod the blonde brawler began firing into the Grimm once more, however the shots were mere annoyance to the bird. With a shriek it broke free from Blake's arm trap, spreading its massive wings before taking off once more. From up in the trees, Ruby began firing at it. Trying to take out its wings, but again they were simply too thick and powerful for the shots to pierce.

"Weiss!" Ruby called out, jumping down from her vantage point. "It's got a bruised spot on its neck! On my signal I need you to launch me. You think you can do it?"

"Can I?"

"Can you?" Ruby asked honestly.

"Of course I can you dolt!" Weiss screamed in frustration before getting into position.

"Blake, Yang!" Ruby called out to her sister and her partner, "Draw it to the cliff face!" The two girls nodded before Yang began running towards the cliffs. Blake simply drew her sword.

"Cien Fleur: Wings." Blake intoned, crossing her arms once more. A hundred arms sprouted from her back, interlocking and weaving together to form a pair of angelic wings.

"Whoa…" Ruby and Yang gaped in amazement.

"I can only hold this for around a minute, your plan better be ready by then… Ms. Leader." Blake said with a smile before taking off with a beat of her own wings. The Nevermore apparently took offense to having one of the pesky ants attempting to usurp its sky and began to chase the airborne huntress while ignoring the blonde taking potshots at it from below. Blake continued to flap her wings, weaving between the giant stone pillars before getting to the cliff face and flying upward, "Ruby!" Blake shouted. Her wings then faded and the black haired girl began to free fall. However it did not last too long as a black ribbon shot out from her sword, wrapping around one of the pillars and the girl safely repelled down.

Meanwhile, Ruby began running at the edge of the cliff she was standing on, almost directly below the Grimm. She hopped, and a large white glyph appeared below her. Ruby landed on it, pointing the barrel of Crescent Rose behind her. With a pull of the trigger she was sent flying towards the Grimm at incredible speeds, boosted by her semblance. The blade of Crescent Rose's scythe caught the Nevermore by the neck as Ruby landed on the larger cliff face that was lined vertically with glyphs. With another pull of the trigger she began running up the sheer cliff face, firing again and again to increase her speed as she dragged the Nevermore by the neck. With a heave as she reached the top, she decapitated the massive bird Grimm, spinning in the air for style bonus.

—

Jaune grinned demonically as Pyrrha's shield flew towards him. He reared his leg back, the flames of Diable Jambe settling it ablaze. He then kicked it with all of his strength, sending it rocketing towards the stinger of the Deathstalker. They figured that if they could impale it with its own stinger it would die on it's own. If not, Nora could always hammer it in for emphasis. The now flaming bronze shield flew towards the stinger, severing it and the top portion of the tail behind it. The stinger then fell into the Deathstalker's armor, cracking it. Jaune nodded to Nora who jumped high into the air and swung her hammer down on the stinger pushing it in further. She then jumped away as Jaune jumped in the air.

"Bien Cuit…" Jaune called out, the flames building up to massive levels around his legs as he picked up speed in his descent, "Grill SHOT!" He shouted, kicking the stinger straight _through_ the Deathstalker's shell in a great blaze. He walked away from the disintegrating Grimm, dusting off his suit and lighting another cigarette. He looked at his parter and temporary allies with a weary grin on his face, one that was matched by the three of them.

—

After getting bandaged up in the infirmary, the 8 teens were led back to the assembly hall. They stood on the podium along with two other teams, the first was already called though none of them could recall their names.

"Cardin Winchester, Russel Thrush, Dove Bronzewing, Sky Lark. You four collected the black bishop pieces. From today on you shall be known as team CRDL, led by Cardin Winchester." Ozpin announced, the tall armored one grinned and pumped a fist in the air before leading his team off the stage. After the cheers died down from the audience, Ozpin turned to face Jaune and his team. "Jaune Arc, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren… You four collected the gold rook pieces, and showed exemplary skill in dispatching the Deathstalker in the Emerald Forest. From this day forth you shall be team JNPR, led by Jaune Arc."

Jaune stood in stunned silence. He was never a leader, not in this life or the last. A second in command, definitely. But leader? Was he cut out for it? The armored hand on his shoulder shook him out of his thoughts, he looked to his right to see Pyrrha's smiling face.

"Whoo! Go Jaune!"

"Yeah lover boy! Show em' what the blondes can do!"

Jaune smiled at the cheers from the sisters. He looked to Blake who simply smiled and nodded before mouthing the words 'later'. Jaune nodded before walking off the stage, his team following.

—

The fall breeze blew Jaune's hair wildly in the wind, revealing his swirly eyebrows to the world. Currently the blonde was standing on one of the many balconies of Beacon Academy's dorms, finishing the cigarette he started after they beat the Deathstalker but was forced to stop lest he face Pyrrha's disapproving glare. She made him promise to only smoke once a day, and even then he had to do it away from her. It was kind of a drag, but he'd respect her on that. He felt a hand on his shoulder, shaking him from his thoughts. Though he didn't bother turning around as he could guess who it was.

"I figured I could find you out here."

"How? It's not like I told anyone which balcony I'd be going to." Jaune said with a snort.

"I just followed the smell of tobacco, Mr. Chef. And besides, I have eyes everywhere." Jaune then turned to see the smiling face of Blake. The black haired girl kept the calm smile on her face for a moment before wrapping the blonde in a hug, tears streaming down her face. Jaune stood shocked, before smiling and patting her on the back.

"Jeez Robin-chan, I thought you got all your tears out at Enies." Jaune chuckled.

"I… For so long I thought it was all a dream… Then when I found the Flower Flower Fruit I…" Blake choked out between sobs, "I knew it was real… And I-I thought I would never see any of you again."

"Me too Robin, me too." Jaune said, continuing to pat his friend on the back. He reached into one of his suit pockets and pulled out a hankerchief, handing it to her. The former archeologist of the Straw Hats gladly accepted and began to wipe at her eyes. "Did you tell them?"

"No, and I don't think I plan on it. I rather like living as Blake Belladona, though the powers of my last life are a nice bonus." Blake said. "Will you tell your team?"

"Maybe. They're my responsibility now, so I should at least try to bring them closer to our level. If it comes up, it comes up. But definitely not for a while." Jaune said with a shrug.

"Jaune you are either deluding yourself or being polite if you think I can still match you. That ship sailed after you more or less did what Roger did to Shiki to the Kambakka Kingdom." Blake said with a chuckle, though the chuckle turned into full blown laughter when Jaune burst into flames, incinerating his cigarette. "Dereshishishi! Oh I missed you all so much."

"So you think any of the others are back?"

"I… have no clue." Robin said, turning away from Jaune as she said that to hide a pained look. "If they are back I haven't heard anything indicating so… And not all of our crew members are as discreet as us."

"True, that stupid mosshead'd probably be some story to to make little kids behave. 'Watch out or the wandering shitty moss ball swordsman will cut you up!'" Jaune said dramatically, laughing afterwards with Blake. The two conversed late into the night, before heading back to their individual rooms to sleep.

 **Bang! And a week early too. So yes Blake has her fruit, no Haki yet. My belief is that because Jaune and Blake are on the same level of their past selves without using Haki I had to balance them so every reincarnate has to re-learn Haki to use it in this life. Just like any Devil Fruit reincarnate would have to find the Devil Fruit they had. Also yes I gave the Grimm a new ability. Since Remnant exists in the future of the One Piece world, the Grimm had to be able to get stupidly strong to compete. Again some of them may look easy for JNPR and RWBY to beat but that is as a team, not solo. Uh, let's see… timelines! So here's what things are looking like in my plans for now. There's going to be one or 2 Beacon chapters before the replacement Jaunedice chapters (1-2 again or skip that and go to the Black and White arc which I really want to speed to because well, I get to reveal the last Straw Hat that'll be coming for possibly the rest of the story (Not the last reincarnate to appear, there's more). Anyway that's all for now. Peace!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Welp here's chapter 3. Took a little longer because of work and it being both mother's day and my mom's birthday this past week… RIP my wallet.**

 **Acrec: I'm not giving Jaune Haki before the teams were formed. That would run out any and all risk in the Emerald Forest. It's would be like when Goku was getting pushed back in the Tournament of Power… while in base form when we knew he had like 12 SSJ stages. Fear not I have decided when Jaune gets his Haki and it's soon.**

 **The Fairy Tail fans: Well that's fine that you guys disagree with me for hating it. I saw it through, but was left _wholly_ unsatisfied by the final arc. This dissatisfaction led me to find problems in other arcs that I enjoy, but mostly I just started really disliking the main cast. If you wanna beef about it PM me, but I wanted to thank you guys. You look past our differing opinions on an unrelated topic and just enjoy the story for what it is. That's more than what my classmates in college can do.**

 **And onto the chapter**

Velvet was ready. Her first class of the semester was Grimm Studies, one she missed the year prior due to an injury she received. While she got the notes from Yatsuhashi, she was unable to take the exam. She looked at her scroll to check the time, 9 AM sharp. She hummed, looking around and saw that almost all of the seats were full. Was the class not full this year? Her question was answered by a black and yellow blur coming into the room alongside a blur of rose petals. Behind them trailed other students who were at an equally rushed pace but lacked the speed to match the two in front. After reaching the room they each took their seats as if nothing happened, not even bothering to catch their breath.

"Now that everyone is here." The portly man at the front of the room began, announcing his presence by clearing his throat. "Monsters! Demons! Prowlers of the night, the Grimm go by many names, but as I like to call them… Prey!"

"I like this guy." Nora whispered to Ren, who shook his head in amusement.

"I'd call them ingredients if they actually stayed around after I kill them." Jaune muttered, causing Pyrrha to giggle.

"How would a Grimm taste anyway?" She asked, keeping her voice barely above a whisper to avoid getting in trouble with the professor.

"Well Pyrrha dear it's simple. It would taste like chicken." Jaune answered, "Though the preparation is what really counts." He said, before starting to scribble in his notebook. Pyrrha peered over and to her amusement the swirly-eyebrow'd blonde was busy trying to come up with various ways to attempt to cook a Grimm. He was seriously writing out recipes, though for some reason his side notes contained 'kill it better than the shitty swordsman'. She would have to ask

The class then became a blur after that, the students tried to pay attention but they could hardly sit through even one of Professor Port's stories without feeling the urge to pass out. Ruby took to doodling on her notepad while Yang texted people on her scroll. Blake's way of fighting the boredom was subtly crossing her arms under the desk and blooming arms on Jaune to poke him, which he swatted away as soon as he could find them. This worked twofold, as it distracted the swirly eyebrow'd blonde from raging at the older man's poor attempt at flirting with Yang. And it was fun to annoy him. She may have the memories of her past life, but she still was 17. Was she expected to not abuse her powers?

"… Now who believes they display the qualities of a true huntsman?" Port asked, his question drawing the students back to focus. While they only heard bits and pieces of what he said those qualities were, the question itself struck a chord in them. Jaune briefly considered putting his hand up, but in reality he hardly considered himself a huntsman. He only had his aura unlocked yesterday, though that was simply because he never felt the need to. Point being, he fought like a pirate not a huntsman. He considered nominating Pyrrha, who he knew was a tournament champion but thought against it, she could nominate herself if she wanted to.

"I do!" Weiss called out to the professor.

"Go get changed into your combat gear and bring your weapon."

"Sir shouldn't a true huntsman or huntress be able to fight in any situation?" Blake asked, "I believe someone like Ms. Xiao Long and Mr. Arc would be more suited for that." Weiss sent her teammate a frosty glare, befitting of her fast growing nickname Ice Queen. Yang however winked at the black haired reincarnate and shot her a thumbs up.

"Pass," Jaune responded, "I consider my chef above all else." Port nodded, accepting his answer. Yang merely smirked at the professor and nodded.

"Well lucky for you two I have more than enough beasties in the back." He said, gesturing to the row of cages behind him. "Professor Ozpin requested a more hands on class this year, and I was more than happy to oblige the old chap!" Port chuckled. "Weiss you can still go to get ready. However let this be a lesson to all of you to either brush up in hand to hand combat, or carry a secondary weapon."

"It's ok to be scared of being shown up by me, lover boy." Yang taunted her male blonde counterpart. "Bring em' out professor!" Yang said, cracking her knuckles as she walked down into the center of the classroom. It had been a while since she had gone in without a weapon, but Blake made a good point. If she was ever captured by the White Fang, god forbid, she might have to go for a little while without Ember Celica if she escaped. Like hell that would stop her, especially if Ruby's life was on the line.

Port nodded and walked over to the row of cages, humming to himself before selecting one and opening it. After putting in the combination, his podium sank into the floor to make more space. Port quickly got out of the way, and not a moment too soon as a Boarbatusk burst from the cage, snarling and squealing at the busty blonde. Its horns were wicked sharp, but somewhat short meaning it was young but powerful. It pawed at the ground a few times before taking off in a mad dash towards Yang. Yang grinned as she adjusted her stance so she was lower to the ground. She put her arms out and grabbed the Boarbatusk by the horns. She grit her teeth as it pushed her backwards, her feet digging into the ground as she tried to gain some ground. She quickly found however she was losing this particular fight and hopped out of the way before she was rammed into the wall.

"Go Yang!" Ruby called out,

"Kick it's ass!" Jaune shouted with equal enthusiasm. Though he was soon scolded by Pyrrha for his swearing.

The busty blonde cracked her knuckles, grinning at the prospect of a physically challenging fight. Yes the Nevermore was strong but it pelted her from afar, definitely not her strong point. This opponent though? _Perfect_. Strong but it had to get in close, a Grimm after her own heart. A lone strand of blonde hair caught her eye as it blew away. She took a deep breath, counted to three and then broke out in a mad dash towards the Boarbatusk.

"Hoho!" Professor Port chortled, "I didn't think anyone would be as brazen as to charge at a Boarbatusk." Yang's fist met bone mask, the boar-like Grimm only gaining a little momentum before it could ram at its target. This time it seemed Yang had more power as she was able to grab the Boarbatusk by its horn and flip it over. The blonde's eyes to anyone who could see them through her flamelike mane hair, were blood red.

"THIS! IS! FOR! MY! HAIR!" Each word Yang screamed was emphasized by a punch to the beast's throat. The blonde girl continued punching it until the Grimm had disintegrated and she was panting in exhaustion from wasting so much energy. To be fair it pissed her off.

And this is what Weiss walked back into. An entirely shellshocked class staring not at her, _as they should_ , but at her blonde teammate who was hunched over and surrounded by black smoke. She briefly had wondered how powerful the Grimm was if it could tire Yang out like that, but she paid it no mind. She was a Schnee, better than the rabble. Especially her young and annoying team leader. And she would prove that here and now. She walked down the steps of the classroom with a slow gait befitting someone of her status. Yang tried to high five her as they passed each other but Weiss paid her no mind. She walked into the center of the classroom and nodded at Port; who walked to the cages and opened another one. A second Boarbatusk came out, this one had curved tusks. It was much older than the one Yang fought, though possibly with age came lowered speed. Weiss readied her rapier and charged at it, ready to skewer the stupid pig.

"Go Weiss!" Ruby hollered, causing Weiss's eyebrow to twitch and lose her focus momentarily. This moment was enough for the Boarbatusk to begin its charge. The point of Myrtenaster collided against the Boarbatusk's mask before it was flung from her hands and Weiss was forced to dodge.

"Oh, what will you do without your weapon?" Port asked, and to his pleasure Weiss answered by summoning a glyph under the Boarbatusk and grabbing Myrtenaster before it could charge her again. However, it broke free quick enough to charge Weiss immediately afterwards. The white haired girl was forced to lock blade to tusk as she flipped over the back of the Grimm, grabbing her rapier before it could be thrown away again.

"Hang in there!" Her _leader_ 's annoying cheering was so distracting. Could she not just let her focus? Weiss ignored her for now, opting to charge at the Grimm again to meet the same results of her sword bouncing off its armor. Though her grip held firm, instead using this instance to twirl around her blade to reposition herself before cartwheeling away from the Grimm as it spun to attack her.

"Weiss, go for it's belly! It doesn't have any armor there!" Ruby shouted to her teammate, trying to be helpful. However the helpful nature of her comment was ignored in favor of Weiss getting annoyed that it was _Ruby_ to point it out.

"I don't need you directing my fight, _leader_!" Weiss snapped at the younger girl, causing Ruby to sigh in acceptance before shrugging her teammate off. Obviously her strategy was sound and _definitely_ didn't need someone's advice, even when that someone actually knew how to fight a Boarbatusk.

"She'll come around." Blake said to her leader, "Though if it's before the end of the fight or not is entirely up to her."

Back in the fight Weiss was smirking to herself. The Boarbatusk bounced up in the air before spinning like a saw blade as it spun towards the Schnee heiress. The girl prepared a glyph that knocked the pig-like Grimm on its back. She then created another one that she used as a platform to jump off of to gain extra momentum for her stab into the beast's throat. She bowed as she heard the cheers from her team and the claps from Professor Port.

"Bravo, bravo! I believe we are in the presence of a true huntress. Take note class, of both Ms. Xiao Long and Ms. Schnee's performances. Both had to adapt to unsavory circumstances, but!" Port accentuated by pointing his finger up, "These are insignificant when you have your team backing you up. Class dismissed." And with that the students began filing out.

A chef first? Velvet mused to herself with a smile as she walked out of the classroom. Wonder if he was any good at making carrot cake?

—

After classes had finished for the day team JNPR went to organize their dorm. Ren and Nora had much less stuff to bring with them than either Jaune or Pyrrha. Beyond their weapons they only carried a few sets of clothes. Though Jaune couldn't talk, he only brought enough suits to last him the days where he didn't have classes. In his defense, nice clothes were money, money he didn't have as much of in this lifetime. Though on the other hand he turned his desk area into a shared JNPR cooking area. Though the deal really only extended to Ren, who was letting the blonde use his desk for work in exchange for letting the other use the kitchen, he wasn't opposed to letting either of the ladies of his team use his area. Currently he was making tea while Blake sat on his bed talking to Pyrrha who was on her's. They heard a knock at the door and Pyrrha went to open it. Standing at the door with puffy red eyes was Ruby. The girl was quickly led in, much to Jaune's confusion as he hadn't turned around just yet. When he did though the room seemed to get much hotter, because the blonde chef was on fire.

"Who hurt you Ruby-chan? Which bastard's gonna die today?" Jaune asked, flames and smoke billowing out his mouth.

"No, no it.." Ruby sniffed, gathering herself, "It was Weiss." The room cooled a little as Jaune settled for cold fury instead of a raging inferno, "She called me childish, and said I wasn't fit to be leader. And all this other nasty stuff. Is she right? I mean I'm two years younger than you guys. Maybe Ozpin made a mistake?"

"Ruby," Jaune said. "That's stupid."

"Jaune-" Pyrrha began to speak, though she was shushed by Blake.

"It's your second day as leader. Way too soon for anyone to say you're bad at it." Jaune said, "Let me tell you about this guy I knew… He was the greatest leader I ever knew." Blake perked up, having an idea as to what this was going to be. "He was strong, brave, had a heart of gold… And a head full of meat." Memories of a straw hat wearing boy running into the mess hall made him smile. In the same breath that straw hat wearing boy was also the picture of a perfect warrior facing down god himself for his friends.

"So you're saying I'm strong but stupid?" Ruby asked while cocking her head.

"Let him finish," Blake whispered to her. She then nodded at her blonde comrade.

"He was one of the dumbest guys I ever knew, but that didn't matter. Once he said he was going to do something, well you couldn't help but believe that it was a fact. I'd follow him to hell and back. And so would half the world after talking to him once…" Jaune chuckled, recalling the times that his captain made inexplicable allies in dire times. "So no Ruby, a good leader isn't someone who's always got a plan or can do anything." Jaune then put a hand on her shoulder, "A good leader is someone who knows what they can't do, and finds people to fill in those weak points. And inspires others to take up the fight." He added on at the end. "But mainly the first thing. It's only the second day, Ruby."

"Right, thanks Jaune!" Ruby beamed, "Uh do you have any cookies by the way?"

"I can make them if you want. I'd just have to go buy some chocolate…" By the time he had finished saying the word Ruby had zipped out of the room in a storm of rose petals, "Chips." When he said that the girl re-appeared, bag of chocolate chips in hand and a megawatt grin on her face. "Well ok then,"

—

Weiss sighed as she gracefully walked through the halls of Beacon. She was practically on cloud nine right now from the praise she got in class. Oh finally someone had taken note of her skill, the time and effort she put into getting to this level. And while she had to share the spotlight with Yang, she could acquiesce this once. The blonde did beat one of those horrid beasts barehanded after all. Through her prideful strut down the hall she was not paying attention, and thus bumped into a taller man.

"Hey! watch where you're going." The heiress cried out indignantly, not yet looking up at the man.

"I apologize, Ms. Schnee. I suppose I have been a bit scattered the past few days, though running an academy does take its toll on a man. And the first few days are never easy." Weiss looked up to see that she had in fact bumped into Ozpin.

"Oh I'm so sorry professor!" Weiss sputtered, "I didn't hurt you did I?"

"You'll find that it takes much more than that to hurt me." Ozpin chuckled, while smiling. "How are you doing Ms. Schnee? Adjusting to the teams well?" The white haired girl scowled at the mention of teams.

"Professor Ozpin, I have a question."

"Ask away,"

"Why her? Why Ruby to lead the team? Out of any of the four of us. Sir she's not qualified."

"And who would you pick? Someone like yourself perhaps?" Ozpin asked, the look on Weiss's face was enough of an answer for him. "Every leader I picked for a reason. Even, no especially Ms. Rose. Give her time, and like her namesake she will bloom."

"But sir, I have prepared my whole life… Had the best tutors in Atlas." Weiss began,

"And that makes you the best _huntress_ on the team, not the best possible leader." Ozpin cut in, though neither time did his voice hold any malice. It was the tone a teacher would take when explaining to them that their answer was incorrect, but not untrue. "Your training and preparation puts you in the perfect position to help your leader grow. Ms. Rose is young yes, but she shows exemplary skill for her age. I believe given time, and most importantly support from her team that she will excel."

"So you're saying that I should put my training to use by instead of being leader, by supporting my team?" Weiss questioned. The idea made sense in a way, in the war with the Grimm personal glory was pushed to the wayside for the team. If she raised Ruby up to greater heights, it would only prove to her benefit.

"That is exactly what I am saying Ms. Schnee. Give her a chance, it is only the second day after all." And with that Ozpin left Weiss to think on what he said. Hopefully it would help her.

—

Later that night Weiss walked back into the dorm. The lights were off except for Ruby's desk lamp, Yang was asleep and Blake was off somewhere. Weiss could worry about that later, she had a leader to talk to. She inched closer to Ruby's bed and saw the girl was lying face first in her notes. Was she up late studying? Maybe Ozpin was right in saying to give her a chance.

"Ruby, wake up." Weiss whispered, she then nudged the younger girl. "Ruby. Ruby!" She hissed, shaking the girl.

"Weiss?" Ruby yawned before snapping awake, "I swear I was studying see."

"I see that Ruby." The white haired girl said. "I… There's no easy way to say this. Sorry about being mean to you earlier." The white haired girl said, "I suppose I should give you a chance to show if you deserve to be leader… But mess up and I'm coming for that spot." Weiss said with a challenging smirk, one in which Ruby returned. There was no animosity, only friendly rivalry. "Now, how do you like your coffee? If you're going to study late the key is to actually be awake."

—

The balcony that they had met on last night had become the unspoken nightly meeting spot between Blake and Jaune. Or, it would be seeing as it was the second night and the second night in a row they were up there.

"So leader hm? I never could picture any of the Monster Trio besides Luffy leading." Blake said with a chuckle.

"Oh really Blake? Who would you say then?" Jaune asked with a smirk.

"Why Usopp of course." Jaune face faulted at her answer, "He did have a crew of over 8000 strong before joining Captain Luffy." The black haired beauty said with a cat-like grin.

"You're just screwing with me, aren't you?"

"It took you this long? Someone's slacking, Mr. Chef." As she said that she lazily dodged a cigarette butt that Jaune threw in her direction. "Besides Franky is the obvious pick, he actually was a mafia boss remember?"

"Just stop calling me that. It's kind of weird." Jaune said, "You stopped after Enies, and we're not even the same people anymore. And fair enough."

"Fine Jaune," Blake said with a roll of her eyes, "So with Ruby earlier, I take it you were talking about the captain?" He nodded, "Do you regret it? Sacrificing yourself then?"

"Not one bit." Jaune said with a smirk. "Do you?"

"If only because Usopp, Franky and I were killed by the marines. Rob Lucci got me with a Shigan right through my heart when I had my guard down." Blake said with a stormy expression, though she didn't notice Jaune's face which showed a mix of apocalyptic anger quelled by regret.

"If I survived…" Jaune began to speak, his hair shadowing his eyes as he looked downward. "If I survived that wouldn't have happened."

"Don't be silly, Jaune." Blake said, "I was ambushed by _Rob Lucci_. The number of people who could survive that before the Paramount War was slim."

"But still…"

"Jaune there's nothing you or Sanji could have done." The black haired girl said.

"Fine, let's talk about something besides our deaths then." Jaune chuckled, "Your family here. What were they like?"

"The first leader of the White Fang." Blake said without missing a beat, "I somehow always find myself tied up with revolutionaries."

"So you were a part of the White Fang then… Wait that means you're a-" Jaune's eyes widened

"Faunus, yes." Blake said, untying her bow as she did so. Her cat ears now free in the wind twitched visibly, huh he was wondering why her bow sometimes did that.

"I see… That just makes you all the more beautiful Blake-chwan!" Jaune said with hearts in his eyes. "So White Fang huh? You leave before or after it got radicalized."

"Let's not talk about it. What about your family? You said your last name was Arc right?"

"Yeah I kind of left home a few years back. My family, well apparently they were a great line of huntsmen… But I didn't want to fight like that. Sword and shield, that's a knight. And while I may be the valiant white knight for any princess in need of saving," Blake giggled at that, "I'm no actual knight. Pretty sure there's a law somewhere saying you can't be a pirate knight."

"Do you ever wonder how they are doing?"

"Sometimes, but they're probably happier without me anyway. I was a pretty shitty son, guess that part never changes." Jaune said with a humorless chuckle.

—

A tall blonde man grunted as the civilian Bullhead he was traveling in landed at the airport. His short trimmed hair led to a neatly trimmed beard of slightly darker color. The man had gray eyes that glinted like steel in the light, tan skin but not too weathered. He wore a white t-shirt under a brown leather vest and a gray jacket with the sleeves rolled up. On his right arm he had some sort of gauntlet with a gold crescent symbol on it. The man got up and grabbed his luggage, a single large suitcase. He easily carried it off the Bullhead, wading through the crowds with ease until he got out of the airport. He pulled out his scroll and dialed up a number.

"Oz! Yeah it's me, I know it's been a while. You wanna come pick me up? Wow twenty years later and you're still a cheapskate… You run Beacon!" The man argued over the phone, "Ugh never mind, I'll take a cab." He grumbled before hanging up. He walked across to the cab line and straight past it. He then continued walking until he exited the airport grounds. "Take a cab? That's for weaklings… Who remember their wallets." He sighed to himself as he began his walk to the city of Vale. After putting the destination in the gps he looked at his background picture, a picture of him, a blonde woman, 7 young girls and one young boy off to the side. "Where are you, Jaune?" He mumbled, after staring at it for a good few minutes. Though he quickly shook the somber mood as he began his trek anew. A good hike would clear his mind, besides he was on his way to visit an old friend. There's no place for sad thoughts now.

 **That's it for now. Yeah it's a little shorter than normal but honestly this chapter is pretty fillery. I was thinking of replacing Badge and Burden entirely but then I realized Weiss still has absolutely no reason to respect Ruby. And because this is more about JNPR than RWBY well I'm not going to devote that much effort to it. Stuff needed to happen a little differently from canon to have Weiss develop the way I want. Ruby doesn't take her shit as much, but she's young and awkward. When someone older and more experienced criticizes you, you kinda doubt yourself a little I'm speaking from experience even though I'm less awkward and more of an ass now. However now she gained a rival. Weiss is Ruby's Vegeta, if the writer had no preference to which one got stronger (GIVE GEETS A WIN DAMMIT TORIYAMA!) Anyway Jaunedice replacement arc is the next chapter and as you can see it revolves around Jaune's family, specifically his father. It's going to be a one to two chapter arc, depending on what I want to do with it. But JNPR will have their time to shine. Anyway I'm done with this AN. Leave a review, fave and follow. I try to respond to all reviews and PMs but I'm human and I forget sometimes, but I will address as many as I can.  
**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey kids you like violence? Wanna see me stick Shusui and Kitetsu through each one of my eyelids? Wanna copy me and fight exactly like I did? Swing 3 swords and get cut by an edgy ass pirate? My brain's dead weight, I'm tryna get my directions straight but I can't figure out which swordsman I wanna stab today. Dr. Chopper said "Zoro you can't stand!" Nah "Then why's your chest cut? Do any of you give a fuck?"**

 **Figured I'd give a little silver medal to his fans before we never see him again here. Anyway guys we reached the first milestone of 100 Faves, in the span of 3 weeks. It's well, I dunno kinda jarring. By the time Scarlet Maelstrom reached that many I was a few months in at least, and I'm pretty sure I got that many because of the pairing lol. Seriously I love y'all so much. Let's keep this fic growing!**

 **Alright so what's on the menu today? Well we got Judge Arc ( Just Jaune's dad, not Sanji's dad reincarnated) comin' to town. You know, visit some friends, drink, bust some skulls. The usual. As for why I'm replacing Jaunedice, besides it sucking… Well there's no way it would work with any member of the cast. Nobody, not even Usopp has as much concentrated suck as canon Jaune did back then.**

Jaune grinned as he lightly hopped from one foot to another. He had been waiting for this for some time now, Combat Class. Not fighting some dinky forest chump Grimm, but human on human combat. He was cautious entering the class, if he got paired off against a female opponent he would look like a fool to the class, and like he was simply looking down on her. In the first week of being at Beacon he found that news of his team and RWBY's initiation test spread like wildfire. He wouldn't be able to coast under the radar, which was fine by him. Luckily for him, his opponent was an arrogant, mace wielding shit-ristocrat. Yeah he dealt with their type before, guy reminded him of Niji, but without any of the power to back up _some_ of his attitude. _This would be fun_.

"So you just going to hop around like a pansy or fight?" Cardin asked, his voice oozing a tone of arrogance. Jaune didn't even bother to swoon at the cheers from his female teammates and friends, instead just reveling in the fight. He shook his head, no not a fight. It was more akin to a slaughterhouse.

"Eh? I told you before. I'm a chef, not a huntsman." Jaune said with a shrug as he took a step forward. The action in of itself was harmless, but with each step the image of a rampaging demon grew clearer behind Jaune. His head was leaned down, allowing his hair to shadow his eyes to give an even more menacing look. In an instant, he blurred out of sight. Cardin frantically scanned the arena to find his target. _"Welcome to the crap cafe, bitch."_ Cardin's face exploded in pain as he caught kick to the jaw that had enough force to lift him a foot off the ground. He was then met with a kick to his stomach, that lifted him another foot, and another, this process continued until Cardin's aura was in the red and Goodwitch forcefully removed Jaune's foot from the other team leader's now heavily dented chest plate as she lowered the two to the ground with her Semblance. Jaune then flashed a smirk and a thumbs up to the class, hoping to get the attention of one of his female classmates.

"And that was our world famous Frites Assorties. I'll leave you the receipt." Jaune said with a smirk. He was about to walk off the stage when Goodwitch stopped him with a glare.

"As you can see, Mr. Winchester underestimated Mr. Arc's speed and power, and paid the price." Goodwitch announced, "Mr. Winchester's aura is in the red as you can see. Though Mr. Arc I would like to ask that you be less brutal in further mock battles."

"With all due respect ma'am." Jaune coughed, "I kind of developed this style for lopping the heads off of Grimm. That _is_ toned down." A blatant lie of course. About it being developed for Grimm at least. He zoned out for the next part of her lecture, instead choosing to scan the room for one specific person. Their eyes locked, and he nodded. Her eyes widened, before her teammate nudged her in the side. Jaune was then allowed to leave and go meet back up with his team at the lunch room. After a quick shower of course.

—

"Johnny boy! Let's get a move on!" Peter called out to him, his teammate's loud and boisterous voice echoed down the halls of their floor, even though John himself was only in the bathroom. The bathroom which did not have thick enough walls to warrant that volume. John looked over himself once in the mirror. Tan skin, deep blue eyes with a hint of purple, and a bit of stubble. He quickly pulled a gray t-shirt on before exiting the bathroom.

"What's got you so excited this morning?" John asked while yawning. It was hardly even 7 AM, hell it was _6:30_. A full half hour before they even started team exercises.

"I believe," A calm voice caught John and Peter's attention, drawing them to the sharply dressed white haired young man standing in the doorway, "He's just excited for this. After all, this is our graduation mission."

"Oz! you got back from your solo just in time." John said with a grin as he ran up to his friend and clapped him on the back. "Basila was worried we'd be doing this without a leader."

"Well she shouldn't have. I'm kind of awesome," Ozpin said with a chuckle.

"You? That's rich you pasty bastard." John said, his previous friendly attitude all but gone as he attempted to put his friend in a noogie. Sadly for him, Peter took that as the moment to step in. Separating the two by force.

"Come on already, I want to get going." The larger man whined, causing his two teammates to chuckle.

"Fine fine, guess we shouldn't keep our other teammate waiting."

 ** _NEVerAgAIn_**

The blonde, John, now older and with a fuller beard woke covered in cold sweat. He had stayed in a cheap motel on the outskirts of Vale. The hardly moving fan was cold comfort to him as he heard it creak as the mid-morning sun creaked through the curtains. He gave a sigh as he rolled out of bed and went to the bathroom to prepare for the day. On his way out he grabbed his duffel bag and his strange gauntlet and put it on. He flexed his armored hand and smirked to himself, the handle coming out the end towards his elbow was a new touch, one he would thank Anatheia for later. Along with the fact that his blade poked through the gauntlet giving him a nice surprise for the Grimm. He walked out of the motel and began his walk to the Bullhead that Ozpin had designated for him. It would be a long trek, though it would be worth it to see his friend again.

The walk through Vale was nice. The city was much more accessible by foot than the farming village where John lived. Though he much preferred the smell of the country to the city. The difference was much less pronounced in Vale; where nature was right at the door, but it was still there. He noticed many of the old Dust Shops he visited in his youth were still open, probably run by the same crazy old huntsman or their children.

"John Arc!" The old man from Dust Till Dawn called out to him.

"Shopkeep!" John chuckled, walking over to the man before shaking his hand.

"You've grown into a fine huntsman. I still remember when you were a wee first year." The old shopkeep chuckled.

"Haha, it was thanks to my team that I got this far." John said with a grin.

"So what brings you back to Vale?"

"Oh I'm just going to visit Oz and Pete. It's been years since I've seen them." John chuckled, "Probably visit Basilla, she'd like to see us together again."

"I believe she would, I believe she would." Shopkeep said with a solemn nod. "I won't hold you up any longer. Give Ozpin my regards!" He said, waving John off. That was nice, it was good to see his store was still going strong even all these years later. He would have to remember to restock on dust there on the way out of town to support the old man.

All in all, with his reminiscing and stops his walk was only around 45 minutes to the Beacon Station. The main Vale airport sadly did not have any flights directly to Beacon as it was still a military school and thus flights required certain clearance. He needed to present his Huntsman ID and Weapon ID as well before boarding. As it took off he was able to take in the sights of the Academy again. It was beautiful, the tower of Beacon stood tall as well a beacon of hope to all in Vale. Hope, he shifted uncomfortably, grasping at an old scar.

 _"Don't worry…" Bloody hands cupped my face as Grimm closed in on our position. Oz was off in the distance fighting off a Goliath. Pete, shit where was Pete. "You'll make it out alive." Her eyes, once full of life now glassy and dull. Cold, my face felt, no I felt cold on my face. She's gone gonegonegone_

 _"NOOOOOOOOOO!"_

 _K-Krunch_! John looked down and saw his hand was crushing the railing in a death grip. His knuckles were white and his hand was shaky. He removed his hand from the railing, and clenched his fist, flexing it a few times before letting his arm fall to his side.

—

"So there we were in the middle of the night," Nora began her story in an eery tone. Yang and Ruby were fully enthralled in the tale while Blake was entertaining herself with her book. Weiss and Pyrrha were simply discussing other topics, Pyrrha having heard this before and Weiss simply not being interested.

"It was the day." Red interjected.

"We were surrounded by Ursai…"

"Beowulves."

"There were dozens of them!" Nora exclaimed, drawing all eyes in the lunchroom to her. The orange haired girl went on unnoticed until she realized the blank look from Yang "Jaune would back me up." She said with a huff

"Jaune would back up anyone that doesn't have a male sex organ." Ren commented, "And it was 2 of them."

"Jaune would do what?" The blonde's voice cut in, causing Ren to freeze. "You're not entirely wrong, shit-sous chef." He grinned as the others turned to face him. His hair was a little damp from the showers but otherwise he looked the same as he did before fighting Cardin, minus the fact he was in uniform rather than one of his normal suits. "Ladies generally have better things to say."

Whatever anyone was about to respond with was quickly cut off by the pained shouts from across the dining hall. Jaune turned slowly to the screams and his face melded into an expression of apocalyptic fury. For he saw Cardin and his team physically and verbally harassing a Faunus girl. It reminded him of nobles like Dofflamingo, or even worse his father. Without saying a word Jaune had already begun marching towards the offending group. He felt a hand on his shoulder though brushed it off.

"Hogging all of the fun isn't nice, Mr. Chef. I think I'd like to express my displeasure as well." Blake said in a tone of barely masked anger. Her amber eyes shone like gemstones, cold and rough.

"Break their legs." Nora said, though it sounded more like an order. The former Straw Hats nodded as they continued their walk. Jaune briefly considered hanging back and letting Blake get some righteous Faunus vengeance, that thought was quickly stomped on by his pride as a gentleman. It would do no good to let this crime against a lady go unaccounted for.

Their slow paced walk got the attention of the students in the cafeteria. Faunus students whispered among each other about someone else standing up to the bullies. Those in the middle looked on, uncertain. While finally the bigots shied away, not wanting to get caught in the ensuing carnage as well. The cafeteria's loud background cacophony of conversation fell to a hush and even Russel nudged his leader to get his attention off of the Faunus girl.

"So Cardin, what'cha doing?" Jaune asked, a wide smile on his face. Though if one looked closer they would see the smile was entirely forced and done through grinding teeth. To his chagrin he didn't have a cigarette to chew on instead.

"None of your business." The bully huffed, though he did let go of the girl's rabbit ears.

"Because it looks to me like you're bullying this innocent maiden, what's your name by the way?" Jaune said, still in the same cheery tone as before.

"V-Velvet," The girl answered shakily.

"Right you looked like you were bullying Ms. Velvet. And that wouldn't be the case, _would it Cardin?_ " Jaune asked, the flames of Diable Jambe flaring full force as he kept up the faux friendly act.

"N-no!" Now Cardin was the one with a tremble in his voice.

"Good, because if it is…" Hands sprouted from the ankles of the members of CRDL, grabbing them by the legs and throwing all the members of the bullying team to the ground. Blake stood off to the side, her arms crossed and a cold expression on her face. "Then trust me, she and I can do _much_ worse." Jaune said, getting up in Cardin's face as he said the last bit. The swirl browed blonde stared down the brunette for a solid 15 seconds before the bigger teen relented and nodded. Satisfied for now, Jaune nodded at Blake telling her to release them. The reincarnates then walked back to their table, though not before Jaune turned around again to speak to Velvet. "Oh and Velvet, a lovely lady like yourself is always welcome to sit with us. Don't hesitate if they start with you again." And with that he left.

Velvet stood there for a few minutes, a blush on her face. She was in such a daze that she didn't even notice Coco come up from behind her. "So who's that?" The fashionista asked her rabbit Faunus teammate.

"Eep!" Velvet yelped, "N-nobody!"

—

Ozpin sat calmly in his office. The content ticking of the clockwork was drowned out by a tune playing throughout his office. It was soft and melodic at first before picking up as more instruments made themselves known through the song.

 _"Yohohoho yo~hoho"_

 _Ding_ , Ozpin looked down at his scroll with an annoyed look on his face. It was a text from Glynda, saying that John was here… And had already seen his son. Ozpin's eyes widened as he blurred from his chair in his office to the elevator, furiously tapping the down button.

—

 _(1 Hour Earlier)_

When John had arrived at Beacon he expected some very simple things. To meet up with his old team, visit Basila's grave, and then get absolutely hammered with Peter. He was not expecting to walk into the dining hall to find a blonde boy and a black haired girl stopping a team from bullying a Faunus. He fully supported that, no it was the blonde boy he didn't expect. Blonde was a normal hair color, sure, but swirly eyebrows? Just the right age for a Beacon freshman? Not too many people fit that bill. Not too many besides his no-good runaway son. Though as a veteran Huntsman, he knew not to go into a situation with too little information. He waded his way through the crowd of students to his possibly-son's table. There he got irrefutable proof, it was all in the eyes. The Arc family's eyes were blue, though what one would not know without looking further is that there is also a hint of purple. Enough that it is a different shade of blue than any other on Remnant, at least that John had seen. It always was interesting to find a long lost family member through that. Jaune, he assumed at least, also remembered him as the boy had paled upon seeing the older blonde.

"So," John Arc rumbled, "You want to do this here or outside?"

"Jaune, who is this?" Pyrrha asked

"He's-"

"I'm the brat's father. Now I'd appreciate some time to talk to my son." John said, his gruff tone representing his expression. The man's face was like stone, a sharp contrast from his son.

"Sorry ladies but duty calls." Jaune said with a chuckle as he stood up.

"I'm here too." Ren said flatly.

"I know, I'm leaving it to you to entertain them in my steed. Don't fuck up." Jaune teased his friend as he walked out of the cafeteria with his father. As the two walked away, Pyrrha shared a look with the rest of her team before deciding to follow them.

The two blondes walked in silence for a while. Neither looking at one another nor making any acknowledgement of the other's existence. They walked until they reached the edge of the Emerald Forest. Here, Jaune leaned against a tree and John stood still as if it was previously agreed upon that they would stop here.

"Your mom misses you." John said, breaking the silence. It was awkward, "Your sisters too."

"You're just saying that. I was a punk when I was home." Jaune said with a chuckle, taking a cigarette out and lighting it before taking a drag.

"You smoke?"

"Have for the past few years." Jaune shrugged.

"Those're bad for you."

"What so we're doing this now?" Jaune groaned. "Look I know you're my dad and all, but I've been on my own for the past two years."

"I _am_ your father." John said, his eyes narrowed. "You ran away two years ago. Do you know what that did? Anna was driven to drinking and Mila, Joan and Kara have been searching the badlands relentlessly. And _now_ you show up at Beacon out of the blue? I don't know who I should be more pissed at, Jeff or Oz!" He bellowed, his shoulders rising with each breath.

"… You know Jeff?"

"Of course I know Jeff. It's why he took you in. I was going to let you do your own thing for a bit, let you find your own path because I thought you would still come home. Then he tells me you up and left, saying you were off to do what you were meant to do or some crap. I didn't tell your sisters because I respected your decision to live as a chef not a warrior." John said, his voice calmer now. "But now you're at Beacon. Disrespecting the name of the Arcs, no the name of warriors the world over with your filth."

"You trying to say something?" Jaune asked, his eyes narrowed. Both Arcs were glaring at each other, blue eyes inches apart. Each looked like they were cut from sapphires.

"You can either use your hands to create or to defend those precious to you." John said

"I will never bloody these hands. They exist only for cooking. And I _will_ protect my friends." Jaune pushed his body off the tree so he could get closer to his father's face. A cloud of smoke hung around his head, giving him a visage similar to a dragon exhaling smoke.

"That way of thinking will cost more than your life boy!" John bellowed, his whole body shaking in rage. "You are childish! You have no place at an Academy for the finest." The older man said, placing a hand on his son's shoulder. "Here are your options. Come home with me and learn the way of the blade, and fight to uphold the honor of the Arc name, or go to Jeff and live out your days as a cook and not a warrior."

"How about option c?" Jaune asked, " _Fuck you_." He then began to storm off back towards Beacon. "You're not even my real father." He grumbled under his breath.

"I was hoping you would say that." John said to himself with a chuckle. In an impressive show of speed and strength he grabbed Jaune by his collar and threw him into the tree the younger Arc was previously leaning against. Splinters of wood flew off as the young blonde got his bearings.

"What the hell old man?" Jaune asked, "I run away and your idea of getting me to come back is beating the piss out of me? What's that gonna do, just have me run away again?"

"If that happens then I'll just chain your swirly brow'd ass to the cupboard." John answered lazily. "Now fight me."

"You asked for it, old man." Jaune grinned as he blurred towards his father. He leapt into the air, sparks trailing behind his feet before igniting full force, "Grill Shot!" He called out as the flames burst forth around his kick. John blocked with his gauntlet, stopping the flames and emitting a haze of steam.

"Ice Dust for the shield. You don't know how many chumps try using fire." John commented, his tone unchanging as if they were talking about the weather." He grabbed Jaune's leg that he used to kick him and pulled the younger Arc in before punching him straight in the jaw. Jaune was sent sprawling to the ground, spit flying out of his mouth from the clean hit. "If you had fought like a warrior instead of a thug you wouldn't have been hit."

"I… refuse." Jaune wheezed as he pushed himself to his feet. He kicked off again, rushing in low this time he was still blocked by his father's guard. The man dodged with ease before drawing his sword from the gauntlet and using the flat end to hit Jaune's inner thigh, knocking his balance. John then went in for a slash though Jaune flipped back and used the sole of his shoe to block. At his father's questioning look he grinned, "I fight _my_ way. I've been learning to counter shitty swordsman from day one."

"Hmph just because you can defend against my sword doesn't mean you can beat me." John rumbled, "A true warrior does more than just defend." He stretched his sword arm out, "He attacks too. Crescent Reaping." With even greater speed then before he swung his blade, releasing a massive arcing flying slash that he sent towards Jaune. With wide eyes the boy dodged.

 _"He can do those? How damn strong is this old man?"_ Jaune asked himself as he dodged his father's ranged assault. The man had some serious arm strength as he was able to send the wind blades almost without pause.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha called out, causing his focus to break and one of the air slashes to get through. The slash cut into his uniform, but luckily was too shallow to draw blood. Immediately after, she and Nora tapped at their scrolls. Jaune watched as his father closed in, readying another attack when he was knocked to the side by Ren who had appeared from thin air.

"I'll have you know I'm much more than a shitty sous-chef as you put it." Ren said to his leader. "You need a hand?" He asked.

"Not really." Jaune shrugged, "But if you're offering." He re-lit his cigarette before jumping into the fray once more. With Ren at his side it was much easier to close the distance on his father, but the man still was without a mark on him. The telltale sound of Nora's grenade launcher firing was all Jaune needed to know that their partners were joining the fight. While Nora and Pyrrha were strong, hand to hand combat was a specialization of the male members of the team and thus they had to wait for their lockers to arrive. If they had jumped in with Ren they would have been a hindrance rather than a help.

Pyrrha rushed in, sword clashing against sword. The large man grunted in exertion as he tried to push back the much smaller female fighter. In the chaos none of her teammates noticed the slight black aura around Johnathan Arc's sword.

"Your semblance, is kind of annoying." Johnathan grunted, he then continued to speak, ignoring Pyrrha's shocked gasp. "I think I know how to beat it though." He gave a feral grin as he swung his sword again, his _entirely black sword ohfuck!_

"PYRRHA! GET OUT OF THERE!" Jaune screamed, the cigarette all but forgotten as he shaved towards his partner. He felt as if the world slowed down for an instant allowing him to see clearly. Pyrrha turning her heard towards him, eyes wide with confusion. Her red flamelike hair swaying in the wind as his father's sword came closer. The edge changed into a spear, and the man standing before him became shrouded in armor and an iron mask. Jaune panicked, his leg muscles kicking into overdrive as he shaved towards Pyrrha to get her out of the way.

"Jaune…" She said, a blush on her face. "You can let me down now."

"Only if you promise to get out of here." Jaune said, his tone deathly serious. "He's way above your level."

"And you're on it?" Pyrrha asked with a questioning glare.

"Not anymore…" He grumbled

"Jaune, we're a team." Pyrrha put a hand on his shoulder, "It doesn't matter how strong he is. We can beat him, together." The blonde reincarnate sighed, his head downcast for a moment before he looked back up. He glared at his opponent.

"Hm fight as a team, die as a team." Johnathan said, "You should have taken my son's advice. But to be fair, I'm on a level of my own." He said while he lazily dodged a barrage of flying kicks from Jaune. "I can hear you-"

"Yeah yeah! Observation Haki I _fucking know! FLAMBAGE SHOT!"_ Jaune roared, flames cloaking his entire being as he blurred into his father's blind spot with a flaming kick. Through the smoke he could see that his father had hunched over a little, hopefully from the damage. As the smoke cleared, Jaune's hope waned. His father's entire side was covered in a layer of black armor, which quickly faded.

"You dented it. Impressive." Johnathan said, "But I am still without a scratch. So the way I see it you're coming with me, boy." The older Arc grabbed Jaune's leg once more, though this time he was forced to dodge a hammer attack from Nora; which forced him to loosen his grip on Jaune. Jaune capitalized on this by kicking Johnathan in the jaw with his other foot. The larger man was knocked back, though he didn't let go and brought Jaune along for the ride. Johnathan grabbed his son with a Haki coated arm and slammed him through a tree. He then turned and rushed towards Pyrrha and Nora, swatting their rain of bullets and grenades as if they were mere annoyances.

 ** _"Don't…"_** Flames burst around Johnathan.

"Oh?" The elder Arc stopped his assault, amused and wanting to see where this would go.

 ** _"Attack a lady in front of me… shitty old man."_** The flames grew more intense as a blonde figure burst through them. **_"Diable Jambe Extra Hachis!"_** Flashes of light shone through the flames, cutting them apart before creating even more. Each flash connecting with Johnathan's body, his Haki coating his frame though still he was pushed back by the sheer force. The mountain of a man grunted

—

Ozpin practically flew through the halls of Beacon searching for Jaune Arc or any member of Team JNPR. He had met up with Glynda by the elevator who was trailing behind at a somewhat slower pace. Their search eventually led them into the main courtyard where Team RWBY was studying. Or at least Weiss was. Blake was reading Ninjas of Love in a tree, Yang was sunbathing and Ruby was snacking.

"RWBY, have you seen where Jaune Arc went?" Ozpin asked, his voice a little haggard from the running. After catching his breath for a moment he noticed Ruby was raising her hand.

"Uh Professor Ozpin are you asking me, or the team?" Ruby asked innocently.

"Yes." Ozpin answered, "Please it is of the utmost importance."

"Why? Who was the man who came to see Mr. Arc?" Blake asked inquisitively, "Was he not his father?"

"Oh he is. That much is certain. That is why I am so worried." Ozpin said. "Ms. Belladona, if you would please search the campus."

"How do y-"

" _Another time_ Ms. Belladona." Ozpin seethed, "Help now and I promise I will give you answers as soon as my informant returns." Seemingly mollified Blake nodded, crossing her arms and closing her eyes. Her brow knit in concentration. She created eyes everywhere, the dorms, the classrooms, the offices, the Emerald Forest. _The Emerald Forest-_

—

Seeing the smokescreen created by his attack, Jaune spared a glance at Pyrrha and Nora. Giving them a thumbs up and a grin, "I'll protect you two. Don't worry."

 _"ENOUGH!"_ The elder bellowed, a wave of pressure rippling across the yard, clearing the smoke and snuffing flames left over from Jaune's attack. His son staggered in his assault long enough for Johnathan to bash him with his Haki coated shield, his teammates fainted and fell to the ground.

"Conqueror's…" Jaune muttered weakly, he tried to stand but faltered.

"Don't know how you know what this power is, but you should stay down Jaune. I don't want to hurt you more than I have to." Johnathan said, his expression unreadable. Jaune glared at him and ran at him, though it was at a much slower pace than before. It was more akin to a drunken stumble. "You just don't know when to _stay. Down._ " He said, releasing another burst of Conqueror's Haki directed straight at Jaune. This time the concentrated effect knocked him out. John checked him over to make sure he was still breathing, silent praying that he didn't over do it. Luckily Jaune was. Sadly for him he couldn't grab his son at the moment as an angry Ozpin with 4 girls and his secretary were running at him. _Oh shit an angry Ozpin and his secretary were running at-_

"Dammit John!" Ozpin growled, picking the much larger man up by his collar. "What the _fuck_ Do you think you _a_ re you doing?" Ozpin asked, those awake gasped. Ozpin never cursed. "You let Conqueror's Haki off on _children_."

"They're training to be warriors. They'll be introduced to it eventually." Johnathan said with a shrug.

"No, no they wouldn't. Nobody should even be able to use it still." Ozpin said, though he muttered the last bit. He then walked over to Jaune's downed form and slung him over his shoulder.

"Hey hey. We had a deal Oz, he's coming with me." Johnathan said with a grunt. Ozpin turned, his green eyes were hard like emeralds.

"Jaune Arc is a student at Beacon Academy. And as such he is under my protection. I think in short the answer is, over my dead body." Ozpin began walking back towards the academy as Goodwitch and team Ruby came to the clearing. "Ah Glynda, good. You got team RWBY. Please help take the rest of team JNPR to the infirmary."

"This isn't over Oz!" Johnathan called out, "The boy knows it too. He'll be back to finish things when he wakes up."

"If he does that is up to him, not you." Ozpin said. "I was much looking forward to this visit. I'm sorry it was soured like this." He peered over his shoulder to make sure that the members of JNPR were properly situated before setting off.

 **—**

Jaune had no idea where he was when he had woken up. The location seemed familiar, though he couldn't put his finger on just _where_ he was. He knew it was a ship, but he didn't think Johnathan would take him on a boat back home. Probably a Bullhead. The boat was more like a ship, a caravel if he was correct.

"A caravel named the Going Merry." A voice, much like his own called out to him. Leaning against the mast by the crow's nest was a tall man in a suit. The glare of the sun obscured his face, though it was clear to see he wore a black suit with an orange shirt and black tie. The man jumped down from the mast, his blonde hair shadowing his face from Jaune. He stood, and Jaune immediately recognized him. Swirly eyebrows just like his own, an almost ever-present smirk, goatee and a cigarette in mouth.

"W-what?" Jaune stumbled back, falling against the railing.

"Yeah that was kind of my reaction when I woke up here." The blonde man, Sanji Jaune knew it to be him, "I guess this is kind of the _me_ part of you." He then pointed to a small island, off in the distance. "That would be well, the rest of you."

"What do you mean?" Jaune asked, "I thought I had literally reincarnated as Jaune Arc."

"Well you know how you have my memories right?" Sanji asked, "And what age did you get them?"

"7, why?"

"Well you had a few years as Jaune Arc. Enough time that well, it separates us."

"Well so what does that mean?"

"In simple terms, this is why you can't do Haki. Everything else in my arsenal is something you can achieve through just training. But Haki requires something else, Armament is literally hardening your will." Sanji sighed, leaning against the railing next to Jaune. "Until now you haven't been pushed. Your will hasn't been tested. Now, it is up to you to go and break that barrier."

"So will you replace me once I break that barrier?"

"Don't be stupid, shit head. This is your show, not mine. I had my turn." Sanji chuckled through a cloud of smoke, "And if you _ever_ let Pyrrha-chwan or Nora-chan get hurt again…"

"Trust me, I'm beating myself up almost as much as you can. With Haki." Jaune sighed, "I won't let it happen again. On my pride as a Huntsman… No a Straw Hat. I'll protect my team, I'll lead them… I'll do Luffy proud."

"Well said." Sanji clapped his younger self on the shoulder. "Now let's get to work."

—

On the outside world, Jaune was not in fact on a boat with his past self. He was in fact in the Beacon infirmary hooked up to an IV while his teammates and friends watched over his prone form. The room was dead silent, nobody dared to speak. The rest of team JNPR had woken up rather quickly from the battle, only receiving minor injuries compared to Jaune. A cut across his chest, bruised ribs, a broken femur, and more than a few head injuries. His aura thankfully had been awakened by Pyrrha a few days before so he could participate in combat class, in this case it was a boon in allowing the medics to actually heal him with aura. Right now, she wished that she could have done more for him than just that. She wished she could have helped her leader.

"What… Happened?" Weiss asked, having trouble finding her voice. "We started running as soon as Blake found you guys but only she could really keep up with it. Who would be able to do something like this?"

"We got wrecked." Nora said, her tone uncharacteristically flat and dejected.

"Yeah but what about Jaune? He's some kind of super hero right?" Ruby asked, "What happened to him?"

"His father happened." Ren sighed as he readjusted his arm in the sling. He had a sprained elbow from getting thrown around by Johnathan.

 _SLAM!_

Everyone's eyes turned to Nora, who just nodded her head to the left where Pyrrha stood. Her fist indented into the wall.

Tears forming in her eyes. "That noble _idiot_!" She screamed. "… We could barely do anything. We couldn't support our leader." Nor and Ren flinched at that. "And worst of all he was _toying_ with us." She spat.

"We'll get stronger." Ren said, as if it were a fact rather than a goal. "Strong enough to support Jaune, strong enough that _none_ of us end up like this again." He said, determination shining in his magenta eyes.

"I believe we share the sentiment, Ren." Blake growled, "Speaking of. Yang you up to a spar? I feel the need to work off some pressure." Yang nodded silently and the two departed to one of the training rooms provided by the school. Weiss also left, leaving Ruby and NPR to watch over their friend. No words were shared only their bond.

—

Night had long since fallen on Vale, the shattered moon hanging in the sky. Johnathan sat in his hotel room, a bottle of cheap whiskey in his hand. He looked down at the drink and took a swig. He gazed out the open window, "Damn it."

"So you never did answer my question." Ozpin said as he came out of the shadows of the dimly lit motel room. Johnathan stumbled back, the bottle of whiskey spilling onto the floor,

"You're paying for that." Johnathan said, seeing Ozpin nod but do nothing else he sighed. "I don't get you Ozpin. He'll die out there. You told me to let him go two years ago, I trusted you and Jeff to make him into a warrior. And this is what I get from it."

"There are are other huntsmen who fight barehanded." Ozpin said deflecting the question.

"And they too will die early deaths. A huntsman or huntress must learn the way of the blade, it is an honor and a duty." Johnathan said solemnly, "That is my belief as the head of the Arc Family. And Jaune…" He grit his teeth, "I should be proud that he's on his way to becoming a huntsman. But when I fought him I couldn't help but see…"

"Basilla fell to unfortunate circumstances." Now it was Ozpin's turn to be held up by his collar. In his defense he showed a remarkable poker face when staring down his much larger and stronger looking teammate.

 _"What."_

"What else would you call bad intel leading us to a Grimm hive? Her death hurt us all. Pete had thrown himself into missions for years before I pulled him out to teach, where thankfully he found his passion." Ozpin was lowered, "And I, well… You know it is just another face that haunts me."

"Hmph," Johnathan huffed childishly, "Even so. He is disgracing the Arc name fighting the way he does. You're better off pulling him out of the program so I can make a proper warrior out of him."

"Maybe, but it is my call to make. Not your's." Ozpin said, "Once a student signs the contract for Beacon they are my wards. And I will protect all of them, from threats unseen…" He turned to Johnathan, "And threats at home. Do I make myself clear?" The smaller man's words were soft spoken, yet they carried the force of a general's order.

"That's fine with your other students. But I said it before, Jaune and I aren't done yet."

Ozpin nodded walking towards the door.

"Oz," He stopped, "Jaune said something. Before the fight. I've been thinking on it, he said I'm not his real father. You know what he means by that?" Johnathan asked.

"There's more to your son than you know."

"And that's why you're fighting so hard to keep him there." It was less a question and more of a statement. "Dammit Oz, he's my kid. What sort of crap is he tangled up with you in?"

"That, is up to him. But should he choose to join me, I believe he will be one of the catalysts in changing the tides of this war." Ozpin opened the door and walked out, standing in the hallway for a moment, "Goodbye John."

 **And that's part 1 of Where for Arc Thou. Yes I decided to make it into a pun, and you can't stop me. I had a lot of trouble starting this chapter as I'm doing it as an original arc but some canon stuff had to stay the same, such as the introduction of Velvet and the cowing of CRDL. Plus the opening scene of Jaune losing to Cardin had to be rectified like Yamcha v Nappa in Fighterz. You would have thought I was done making DBZ references, but really they never stop with me.**

 **Anyway Johnathan. The first Haki user we have in the story, and a Conqueror too. Thoughts? He was a little hard to write. I wanted to make him go against Jaune, but not an outright bastard. I wanted to make him unmoving in his beliefs in what makes a warrior, and willing to prove it through combat. This was to give him an image that would remind Jaune of Judge. The reason Jaune was not able to fight off the effects of it was because again he doesn't have it just yet. If it wasn't made clear in the story then let me explain. Sanji was reincarnated into Jaune, but the Arc still lived without those memories for 7 years. Those 7 years were where the real Jaune Arc lived, creating a 'divide' in Jaune's soul. This is seen through the Going Merry being a projection of Sanji and the island being a projection of Jaune Arc. I'll go into more detail next chapter once we're back in there.**

 **I also had to make JNPR get roughed up too. I realized they didn't have enough screen time yet, which Nora and Ren desperately need. I hope I didn't do a bad job with them. I have big plans for them, it's like Sanji said, it's their show.**

 **That's all for now. I'm going to not really put up a date for when the chapter will be up by. Assume it'll be around 2 weeks like it usually is. I feel like I could make it longer, and maybe I will with edits, but for now I think a solid 7 thousand is good. Anyway drop a review if you like it, have something you want to see, or have something I can improve on. Writing here doesn't pay cash, but getting better as a writer is pay enough. However I need feedback to improve. If you got a personal issue with my opinions then take it up with me in PM. I'm down to bullshit with y'all for hours on if Goku can suplex Superman or whatnot.**

 **Anyway that's enough rambling for now, peace!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Back again Jaunce again, the man with half a plan to steal a copy of God Of War 4 from Best Buy. Delivering to you pain, truth, justice, and the American way… Ok that's lowkey bullshit since I'm actually mostly a pacifist and from the fiery pits of hell, not America. Anyway so, Jaune got his ass beat. Now it's time for the comeback, more of Jaune's Haki dilemma will be explained as well as more of Johnathan's backstory. For anyone wondering why the Merry was the representation of Sanji rather than the Baratie it's because the Merry was where he started to live for himself, not in debt to Zeff.**

 **Also someone pointed this out to me in PM where I wrongfully stated that Johnathan was the first Haki user in the story. Yes I know Roman has Haki, I just forgot that I had him use it a bit. I meant to say that he's the first confirmed user, whereas with Roman Jaune didn't even consider people would have Haki still so he brushed it off.**

 **So this is a bit slower of an update, and not because I was having trouble writing it just that shit's getting hectic in the real world. Summer classes aren't fun, especially when you miss the deadline for applications because of some bullshit and then scramble to find online classes. Not to mention I started training for my job as a climbing instructor at a summer camp last week and that's both physically and time draining. Seriously I'm out of the house from like 7-6 once the session starts. Also I had to edit my plan because of the newest One Piece chapter introducing something I want to use so that took time.**

 **Thanks again for your continued support guys, love y'all as much as anyone could love someone who they never seen, met or even know their real names.**

After hearing the whole story from Pyrrha, Yang was beside herself with anger. And the worst part was she didn't know who she was angry at right now. She didn't know if she was mad at Johnathan for beating 7 shades of piss out of his son, Jaune for running away from home for seemingly no reason like her mother, or her mother… Just because what Jaune did reminded her of Raven. She was thankful that she was on a team with her sister, at least in this case as Ruby understood why she had wanted to be alone. She would explain to Blake later, the strange girl seemed trustworthy. Though her fashion sense was a bit… strange. Yang wasn't one to judge, but a cowboy hat? The bow was much cuter, though it did give her a more mysterious air.

The fall breeze helped cool her off, physically. Inside it still felt as if an inferno was blazing.

"Hello partner," Blake said, walking towards her blonde teammate. The girl had changed her outfit a little since initiation. She now wore a leather top instead of her black and white one and a black cowboy hat as well. "I take it Mr. Chef's condition is disturbing you as well?"

"Something like that." Yang grunted, she wouldn't understand.

"If you say so." Blake hummed, she then leaned against one of the railings and pulled out a book that she then began to read.

"Did Ruby send you to check on me?"

"Oh no," Blake chuckled, "This is actually the spot I usually meet up with Jaune."

"Oh? Does my partner have a thing for lover boy?" Yang teased, a grin on her face. She then gasped dramatically, "Or, have you secretly been hooking up since the first night? Oh the scandal! And you didn't let me in on this, I'm hurt."

"No, no. Not like that." Blake said, her hands waving frantically and a blush on her face. "He's like a brother to me."

"You knew each other before Beacon?" Yang asked, coming closer to her partner so she could listen better. An inquisitive look on her face. For all the time Team RWBY spent together she could hardly say she knew her partner well.

"Ah forget I said anything," Blake said quickly.

"Blaaaaake." Yang drawled, poking her partner in the side. "Come on tell me~" She whined, "I bet you got all sorts of embarrassing stories about him."

"Yang, you may be my partner but there are certain things about me you don't need to know yet." Blake whispered. Oh she desperately wanted to tell her team of her days as a Straw Hat, well Ruby and Yang. Weiss would scorn her for criminal activity, which admittedly was fun so she would just thumb her nose at the haughty heiress when it came about. At least that part… Her past as a White Fang member and as the Demon Child of Ohara led her to be cautious. She made the mistake of trusting the wrong man with the truth once before and would not make it again. No matter how much Ruby reminded her of the Straw Hat wearing boy. **(THIS IS NOT SAYING THAT RUBY IS LUFFY'S REINCARNATION NO NO NO. I DON'T WANT NONE Y'ALL GETTIN IDEAS)**

"I get it, but some day you'll have to." Yang said

"Oh I will. My days of running are over." Blake chuckled, waving her off, "Though I wonder if yours are?" she whispered, too low for Yang to hear as the blonde left the balcony and Blake to her reading.

Her talk with Blake did little to calm her down, seeing as it was 12:40 in the morning the training rooms were closed. Yang cracked her knuckles before leaning her head to the side and doing the same to her neck. Lucky for her there was a whole forest of Grimm to vent on at least while Jaune was out of commission. Though she supposed she could check on her fellow blonde one more time before heading off.

—

Ozpin returned to the academy grounds at around midnight. He sighed to himself as he continued on his leisurely pace. There was no need to hurry, he knew from the hourly updates from the medical staff that Mr. Arc was recovering smoothly. The sound of grunting and subsequent thunks caught Ozpin's attention. The headmaster immediately went to investigate the noise, hoping to Goda he wasn't about to catch two students doing the deed. Instead to his shock he saw Lie Ren throwing punch after punch into a tree. Each attack was smooth, almost no effort wasted; though Ozpin could assume that was due to his emotional state rather than skill level.

"Mr. Lie," Announcing his presence, the elder huntsman walked over. Ren looked over at Ozpin, a look of subdued anger in his eyes. "While I appreciate the show of initiative in your training, I would ask that you not destroy the trees here. Our groundskeepers put quite a lot of effort into keeping our campus looking this way."

"Apologies, but the training rooms are closed."

"Yes that would happen at such an hour." Ozpin nodded, "May I ask why you are the only one out here?"

"Pyrrha is staying by Jaune's side. I told Nora to get some rest." Ren answered curtly, moving from attacking the tree to performing various kata.

"And you?" Ren glanced at him again, "Do you not need rest as well?"

"I can't. Professor you know my story," Ozpin nodded, though Ren did not pay attention. "After I lost my home I vowed to never lose anyone again. I trained, I trained for years. And now I find out that there's a whole level of those above me. Those I couldn't hope to touch."

"Such as Jonathan Arc I assume."

"Yes… But even Jaune." Ren stopped his katas and looked down at the ground with his fists clenched. "Even though none of us were strong enough to beat Johnathan he was keeping up, at least making him acknowledge his presence beyond a mere annoyance." His teeth now grinding together, "It made me fee-"

"Worthless? Weak?" Ozpin offered, "It is normal to feel that way when faced with one of L-I mean one of the Arcs." He sighed in relief as Ren did not notice, or at least chose not to comment on his slip of tongue. "That family was known back in the Great War for their powerful knights who were able to take on armies with but a handful of men." Ozpin smirked at the huntsman in training, "However there is a way to overcome them."

"I take it you are speaking of Haki?" Ren asked, his attention fully on Ozpin. If he could master that power that Jonathan displayed he could be sure to never lose a comrade.

"Yes, and no." The older man walked towards Ren, "The simple fact is that Haki takes time to manifest. Some may awaken their's quickly however have less power and vice versa, so on so forth." Ozpin explained, "And believe it or not, I am actually banned from teaching Haki as a professor of Beacon. The training methods I went through violate several codes." He then pulled out his Scroll, "Come to the training room alone tomorrow morning. I will send you a code tonight. What you will be learning is not Haki, however it should elevate your skill as a close combat fighter to greater heights."

Ren's pink eyes hardened like gemstones, a look of grim determination on his face. Memories of a tortured past, his village burning, his family gone, _his old family._ _"I swear to myself.."_ He clenched his fist, _"I will never.."_ "Thank you, I would be honored Professor Ozpin." _"lose anyone again!"_

Ozpin said as he looked up at the moon, "It _is_ getting quite late. Best you head to your room now, Mr. Lie. I expect great things from you." The elder huntsman then parted ways with his young student. His walk renewed. Before he turned the corner, he reached out with his Observation and was glad to see that Lie Ren had taken his advice. The boy would need to grow stronger in the coming days. But _his_ child? He accepted her like any other student for sure, but he wasn't entirely sure he could trust her with the power he was entrusting Ren. _"Or rather 6."._ Yes he believed things would turn out fine, those children would guide each other from the darkness of their family's shadows. They would have to if they were to face what was to come.

—

Jaune's journey through his minds cape could be summed up in about two words. _Shitty hell._ The mental avatar of his past life had put him through the paces, working out as many of the kinks in his Black Leg style in the most painful way imaginable. When they had finally docked on the island, Jaune didn't even notice as he was busy sleeping off the last beating-er training session with Sanji.

"Wake up shithead," Sanji said, "We're here."

"zzzzz"

"I thought you were my reincarnation, not the shitty moss ball's." Sanji said, his voice carrying a slight threatening tone. To his shock, and pleasure, a blazing kick narrowly missed his face. "Oi! I need this for the ladies!"

"You're dead, I'm the one who needs the face." Jaune yawned as he popped up. He then looked at his reflection in the water, "And still perfect." He beamed.

"Little shit," Sanji chuckled. He wondered if he acted like that, scratch that he knew he did. Hell he was worse back at the Baratie. The older chef looked over at the island they docked at. Dark clouds covered the sky and the castle on the island, well it unnerved him. While it was the representation of the _Jaune Arc_ side of his reincarnate he couldn't help but note the similarities in the castle to that of the Germa. The 66 emblazoned on the tattered flag behind the Arc symbol did nothing to assuage these worries. "Get going, hopefully this'll be the last time we meet."Jaune nodded and sky walked off the ship to the island.

Jaune's landing was smooth, until he nearly tripped on a tree root. He quickly dusted off his suit and straightened it before lighting himself another cigarette. Smoke trailed behind the young leader as he trekked towards his goal. The island was small, though Jaune had no real personal point of reference. He was however able to compare it to places like Punk Hazard or Dressrosa from his memories from Sanji.

 _Tss_

With a minor hiss of annoyance Jaune shook the ash off his finger and tossed his cigarette away. "I better not be losing any of my cigs in the real world." He muttered, stuffing both hands in his pants pockets before walking to the door. Seeing no handle or way to enter, Jaune shrugged his shoulders and walked away. Before jumping at the door with a shout of "GRILL SHOT!" and in a blaze of destructive glory the door was blown down. The inside of the castle was unlit, the dim light from outside hardly illuminating the area beyond the entrance. However Jaune could see a tattered carpet. "What a shithole." He sighed, taking his scroll out of his pocket to use as a flashlight. However after taking a few steps he found it was unnecessary as lanterns on the sides of the walls lit one by one, ranging from the entrance all the way up to the throne. Sitting in it was a young man who looked exactly like Jaune, except he wore a suit of knight armor and carried Crocea Mors, his gaze was cold, his eyes like chunks of blue ice.

"So you finally acknowledge me." The other Jaune said with a grim smile. "Let me guess you want your Haki."

"You already know what's going on outside."

"Yes."

"And you _still_ suppress my Haki? You deliberately made it impossible to defend Pyrrha and the rest of my team." Jaune blurred towards his look-alike, his form ablaze. His pure rage could be felt like an omnipresent force, suffocating anyone who dared to cross him. Anyone except the man in front of him.

"Impressive use of Shave. Y'know this island… It's the part of your soul that you reject." His look alike said, completely unfazed by the flames. "As I was saying. I don't particularly care to help you. I would prefer to be fighting like father than you, so him taking you away actually benefits me." He then blurred down the stairs as to gain distance from Jaune.

"I know I damn well didn't call him father."

"I told you, this is the parts of your soul you reject. Including the Germa upbringing." the doppelgänger said with a smirk as he drew his sword. "Personally I can't access it either as a drawback from suppressing your own Haki… But I am more than powerful enough to beat you."

"Ch, put em up shit-copy." Jaune snorted a plume of smoke before he dashed towards his target and with a cry of "Collier shoot!" The battle kicked off. Shoe met sword faster than the eye could see as the suited blonde tried every angle and even used his flames but to no avail. "Gigot!" Jaune called out as he swept at his opponent's legs but was rebuked by the shield. "The hell do I even call you?"

"Hmm… We can't both go by Jaune." His other muttered while cupping his chin. This lasted a moment before he slammed his fist into an open palm and with a sadistic grin he spoke. "I got it! Call me Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue and ladies love it." **(I had to put it somewhere. Just be happy I don't go pun crazy and have Jaune use an open face slamwich… Ugh I hate myself for making a 4kids reference.)** He said before readying his shield and charging at Jaune. "King's Lance!" He then blurred past Jaune, his sword held out in front of him facing forward. He looked behind to see large tear in the side of Jaune's suit and a cut on his side. Blood dripped down, staining the cyan shirt an ugly brownish red. Jaune grimaced but otherwise was unfazed. "First blood, you might as well give up now." Arc called out with a cocky grin.

"First blood's an appetizer. Let me introduce you to our main course." Jaune jumped towards his opponent, flipping in the air as his legs blazed with white hot flames and kicked at him again. With the use of Kami-e Arc dodged the initial attack but was unable to defend himself from the follow up which sent him flying through one of the castle walls. Smoke billowed around him, obscuring Jaune's vision. The suit wearing blonde looked around the smoke, trying to find his doppelgänger.

"You really should stop smoking all the time." Arc's voice rang out through the smoke, Jaune kicked at where he thought the noise was coming from but hit nothing but air. Another cut appeared on his arm and the smoke cleared enough for Jaune to see the sheen of blood on his opponent's sword.

"You should stop talking." Jaune grunted, "Can't believe I'm taking a page out of that shitty swordsman's book…" He did a handstand and then began kicking fast, rotating his legs and creating a miniature tornado that only grew, "Rôtissoire!" He called out as his legs blurred, clearing the smoke. If he were standing still he would be able to see Arc using his shield to ground himself. Letting his spin stop, Jaune quickly reoriented himself and launched a blazing kick at Arc, however the doppelgänger blocked with his shield. Sparks and flames flew off the opposing forces, neither budging an inch. Through the flames Jaune could see a crazed grin on Arc's face as he jumped back to avoid a slash from his opponent. With the use of Sky Walk to rebound off the air, he then launched a Collier Shoot at Arc.

"Try all you want!" Arc cackled as he blocked with his shield again. This time he went in for another lightning fast stab, however Jaune twisted out of the way and with his other foot.

"Shut the hell up!" Flames burst to life around Jaune's other leg as he delivered a powerful heel drop to Arc that sent him to the ground. Smoke and rubble flew everywhere but the suit wearing blonde was unfazed, casually lighting a cigarette as if he wasn't covered in scuffs and bruises. The smoke cleared and Jaune could see that there were spiderweb cracks spreading from the area of the crater where Arc's head indented and small cracks were formed around the rest of the armored blonde's body.

"I won't… Let you… Win." Arc wheezed out.

"Why? We both want to protect our team right?"

"Because…" The armored blonde pushed himself up to his knees and leaned on his sword. "You're a fake! I'm the real Jaune Arc! It's my team! Mine!" He screamed as he pushed himself upright and rushed towards Jaune using Shave. "Arc Judgement!" He roared, using his speed and the surprise to cut clean across Jaune's chest. The cigarette was snuffed out, the half burning end sizzled out against the ground as its smoker fell to his knees. Arc wheezed, his arms heavy and he was barely able to grip his sword and had taken to leaning against both his sword and shield. Seeing that his opponent was in no shape to get up, Arc began walking towards the castle gate. "Finally… After so long." He said with a smile full of grim determination and hope.

"You… dumbass." It couldn't be. Arc's eyes widened and he slowly turned his head. Standing behind him was his suit wearing other, the _fake._ His blood soaked suit jacket and shirt were tossed to the side, revealing his muscled and bloody physique. His head was tilted down, shadowing his eyes from view. "WE'RE BOTH JAUNE ARC!" Jaune shouted before he disappeared from Arc's view. "Épaule." The blurry visage of a flaming demon appeared before it brought its leg down on Arc's shoulder. "Côtelette" The shade dropped low and kicked him in the ribs, "Selle, Poitrine, Gigot." More blazing kicks rocked Arc's body before he could even recognize where he'd been hit. The shade stopped blurring and the flames around Sanji's legs disappeared. "I won't let you or anyone get in my way… I won't give up my morals because I'm no longer Sanji. I am neither Sanji nor Jaune Arc… I am both. Think on that while I put you in time out, Shitty-copy." Jaune said with no emotion as he leapt into the air and reared his leg back. "Mouton Shot!" He shouted, his legs blurring as flames built up around them. Through the flurry of kicks one turned an obsidian sheen, "GET LOST!" With the final kick Arc was sent flying tumbling through the stairs and indenting himself in the far wall. A slow clap drew Jaune's attention and the blonde prepared himself for more combat, however relaxed when he saw it was Sanji walking towards him.

"You did good kid." His past life said with a smirk. "I'll take things from here. You look like you got a handle on things. Give your old man the ass kicking I never got to give mine." Sanji said with a grin and a thumbs up.

"What's going to happen to him?" Jaune asked, thumbing in the direction of the insensate Arc.

"Eh we'll both probably fade into your subconcious. The only reason we were even able to manifest like this was because your-our-whatever our soul was literally fighting itself… And you're in an aura induced coma." That stopped the conversation short. In an almost robotic fashion, Jaune looked at his swirly browed elder in complete deadpan.

"What."

"Yeah, what you thought you got off with no scratches? You're not me kid, not by a long shot. The damage was mostly healed and they put you under for that but you only stayed asleep because you were busy here." Sanji chuckled as he looked upwards. Jaune did too, and noticed that the island wasn't nearly as grim looking anymore. The clouds had parted, if only slightly. "You should wake up soon kid. Don't fuck up out there, I gave all the help I could give." He turned around to see that Jaune wasn't standing there anymore. "Shitty-replacement…" He grumbled with a smile on his face as he walked over to Arc. "Now what to do with you…"

—

The soft beeping noise coming from the machines in the medial wing was the only thing keeping Pyrrha awake at this point, whether that was good or bad was something she was debating in her head. Letting out a soft yawn she looked out the window and up at the broken moon in the sky. Unlike back home there were much less stars in the sky, though the moon remained. A constant reminder of the enemy they face outside the safety of the walls of the kingdoms. He gaze drifted back to Jaune, _"And the enemies in our own families."_ She sighed in annoyance. She was Pyrrha Nikos, the invincible girl. And yet, when her leader got into trouble she could do nothing but stay on the sidelines. Admittedly none of them were a match for Johnathan, though that didn't change the feeling. Shelooked back out the window and did a double take, fumbling away from the window as Johnathan Arc was hanging right outside of it from a tree branch by one hand. The other hand he was using to knock on the window with a seemingly polite smile on his face. Pyrrha rolled her eyes and pointed downward, seeming to get the message he nodded and let go of the branch. A dull thud was all she needed to know he landed. The greek themed huntress then made her way downstairs and was greeted by the sight of Johnathan leaning against the fountain.

"So Invincible girl, Pyrrha Nikos. A pleasure to meet you."

"We met earlier."

"We did?" Johnathan's eyebrows scrunched together and he squinted at her. "Eh maybe, I'm a little drunk though. You're my boy Jauney's teammate right?"

"That's correct." Pyrrha's eyes narrowed as she twitched her fingers. She had opened the window to the hospital room and left her weapons up there, however the distance was short enough that she could summon them with her semblance if necessary.

"An he's the leader?"

"Yes."

"Hm, brat's got a fine team under him." Johnathan muttered, "All the more reason to mould him into a proper warrior so he won't make the mistakes I did."

"I can't let you do that."

"I'd like to see you try." Johnathan's grin was wider than before, "Oz betrayed me, figured I'd take matters into my own hands. You kids can either stop me here, or Jaune comes home with me." Johnathan then launched himself towards her, his footfall leaving indents in the ground.

 _Shing_

Pyrrha opened her eyes to see sparks flying between obsidian colored arms and green blades-Ren's blades! Her eyes widened as she watched her silent teammate defend her from Johnathan's attack. Seeing her chance, Pyrrha used her semblance to summon her shield which flew towards Johnathan at breakneck speeds. He dodged it, but barely if the sparks gliding off his chest were any indication. The man let out a grunt of annoyance as he tried to swat at the shield before it returned to Pyrrha.

"A bit late for a walk isn't it." Pyrrha said to the green wearing boy with a slight teasing smirk. Though she was greatly relieved to not have to go up against Johnathan alone, especially not right now.

"I was coming back from some late night training. Had to blow off some steam." Ren said, his voice curt though Pyrrha could detect the rage bubbling under the surface. "And well if I let you or any of the other girls get hurt while Jaune was out of commission…" Ren shuddered, "I'd rather deal with the father than the son in that case." He chuckled, "Care for round 2?" He asked before darting towards Johnathan at impressive speeds, though not quite at the level that Jaune and Ozpin displayed. He slid between Johnathan's legs and attempted to hook Stormflower onto his pants. The strategy was sound considering that Johnathan was able to harden his skin to block steel, except that he was also able to grab Ren and throw him like a ragdoll before the he could execute his move.

"You kids are strong for being firsties. Hell strong for students." Johnathan rumbled as he stalked towards Pyrrha, "But nowhere near my le-" Pyrrha threw her shield again, causing Johnathan to sidestep it with an annoyed look on his face. "Really? You already tried that. Kids these days are getting lazy." He muttered while shaking his head before looking back at Pyrrha, and not a moment too soon as the red haired amazon was practically upon him with her sword poised to attack. He was soon on the defensive, though by choice as he was able to parry most of her strikes. Until she switched to the spear form, the girl had truly mastered her weapon. She was able to seamlessly switch between rifle, spear and sword before he could properly counter the last form, leaving him to play the guessing game with which form she would use next. Not to mention the constant sting of bullets from the green wearing boy. Johnathan sent him a glare, he should have made sure the boy was down for the count. Overconfidence would get him killed.

 _Johnathan grinned as his sword cleaved through an Ursa. To his right was Peter who had cut off the arm of a Beowulf before jamming the blunderbuss into its moth and pulling the trigger. The Grimm then dissolved into smoke leaving only the grinning huntsmen in training._

 _"Heh this is fun. We should do exterminations more often!" Johnathan laughed, clapping Peter on the back. "With a team like ours, we should be able to make more territory for humanity in no time."_

 _"I like it, we'll be hailed as heroes." Peter chuckled._

 _"Better than that, we will be heroes." Johnathan said, "You know where Oz and Bas are?" He asked but got a shrug in response. Static rippled through his comm and Peter's, if the slight wince was any indication.  
_

 _"Guys there's a Nevermore flock circling me. I need aerial support!" Basilla's panicked voice crackled through the comms and shook the two males out of their stupor._

 _"What's your location Basilla?" John's voice was curt, "Can you hold them off long enough for us?"_

 _"I think I-CAW! Shut up you stupid bird! Yeah I can stay alive. 10 clicks east of the mines."_

 _"We're on our way." Peter said, nodding once though she could not see. "Have no fear lady Basilla! For I Peter Port am coming to save the day!" He shouted, striking a grand pose with his blunderbuss axe before running off. Johnathan shook his head briefly and followed, always trust Peter to bring a bit of levity to even the darkest of times. It wasn't hard to find her, the Nevermores made sure of that. However Basilla had neglected to mention the hoards of creeps and Ursai she was barely keeping at bay. They saw a flash of light cleaving through the other end of the horde, Oz had arrived. The two huntsmen in training nodded at each other before leaping into the fray. Like a well oiled machine the two easily cut down any opposition while easily avoiding each other with their attacks. They had perfect synergy, two tanks who would let nothing stop them from achieving their goal._

 _"RAAAGH!" With a herculean swing John cleaved through two Ursai with his sword before flinging it clean through the skull of a Gryphon. He ran towards it and grabbed his sword as the being dissolved, "Basilla!" He roared. A shadow cast over him and the young blonde man glared at the Ursa that had reared its fist back at him. "Fuck…"_

"OFF!" Johnathan bellowed as his Haki encased fist slammed into his opponent sending her skidding back. He assumed it was a her by the sound of the scream of pain. His eyes were wide and crazed as he held a hand to his fast beating heart. He looked up and saw a trail of rubble leading to a blonde girl cradling her arm. An aura of flames flickered around her, fighting to stay active before it burst into full power.

"Don't hurt my friends." She growled, running at him with her good arm reared back. The other two were too shocked by the girl's appearance to move in to help. Their mistake. Johnathan grunted as their fists met. The girl's shotgun portion of her gauntlets also doubled as boosters for her punches it seemed. Sparks and shockwaves blasted off their fists as they met time and time again. However Johnathan had enough of this and saw her next moves clear as day and with impressive speed dodged her next punch completely and kneed her in the ribs. Yang's eyes faded back to purple from the blow and Johnathan took his chance to push back, grabbing the girl by her throat and dragging her against the ground before throwing her at a tree.

"Yang!" Pyrrha called out in worry as Ren checked her over. He put his fingers to her neck and let out a sigh of relief, letting Pyrrha to let out her own that she did not know she was holding in. At least their friend was alive. It was too bad the powerhouse was taken out as quickly as she joined, they definitely needed her strength.

"Another brawler." Johnathan spat, "I'm doing her a favor, taking her out of the fight like this. Fools have no place on the battlefield unless they wish for an early grave."

 _His punch sent the Ursa staggering back a bit before Peter blew a hole through its chest. Nodding thanks to his partner he continued his search._

 _"John!" His head snapped to the left to see Basilla desperately fighting off the Ursai. He could see how tired she was. Cuts and bruises covered her exposed skin and sweat matted her hair to her forehead. She reached her arm out with pleading eyes, right as the Nevermore dived in for the kill._

 _"NOOOOOO!"_

"My teammate…" His voice hitched a bit, "My teammate died for that mistake. I don't want my son or his team to have to face the same challenge I did. Nobody deserves that fate, losing a teammate." He shook his head. "Do you see now? Do you see why I fight against you?"

"I see you're a bitter old man stuck in his ways." Ren spat.

"We are not your team." Pyrrha agreed, her gaze meeting Ren's causing the two to smile. They were a fresh team, however it was their duty to support each other.

"You…" His shoulders shook from the rage he felt as he bared his teeth at the upstart brats, "Little rats!" He roared as he charged at his opponents. His entire frame covered in Armament Haki. He raised his sword high above his head as he prepared himself to cut down the two who stood in his way. He swung down with all his might, though the blade stopped moving halfway through the swing. He glanced down, attempting to see what had stopped his attack and to his shock and pleasure it was a foot.

"I told you already, shitty old man…" Smoke trailed from his new opponent's lips as he spat the cigarette to the side. Bandages covered Jaune's chest and arms and the boy hadn't even bothered to cover them up with a shirt. He still wore his pants and shoes though, and a confident smirk not present through the later half of their previous fight. "Don't _ever_ try to lay a hand on any of the ladies here." He snarled.

"Bout time you showed," Johnathan huffed, though you could see the smirk on the older Arc's face.

"Ren, Pyrrha…" Jaune looked towards the tree, "Yang… Thanks for holding him over for me. Sorry to keep you waiting old man, but you know how us chefs are. Preparations have to be perfect before the meal is brought out."

"You're worse off than your team, kid. You might as well just come back now."

"You should give up on getting me to come back." Jaune sighed, "It'll be easier for everyone."

"I refuse." Johnathan grunted as the gears in his gauntlet whirred.

"Then I refuse your refusal." Jaune grinned as he blurred from sight and delivered a kick to his father's back.

"So you're fighting serious now." Johnathan chuckled as he rubbed the spot on his back, "Maybe in a few years you'll be good enough but for now…"

"Shut up!" Jaune roared, "Grill Shot!" Flames burst to life around his legs as he moved in for a powerful kick. Johnathan knew better than to block, however his son had caught him without much option to dodge. Johnathan readied himself to block the kick with his Haki, but was shocked to see he was actually being pushed back. After the flames subsided he let his armament drop, revealing the scuffs on his arms. "So you went and unlocked it."

"I had it all along old man, just needed the right motivation." Jaune chuckled, his leg still coated in the black armor provided by his Haki. "I'm on your level now old man."

"You little shit…" Johnathan grunted as he shifted his hands and grabbed Jaune by his leg. "You're a thousand years away from being on my level!" He bellowed as he spun his son around before throwing him skyward. Johnathan then followed, a crater forming under where he jumped. He sliced at Jaune who kicked away mid air and seemed to practically be flying. He then lashed out with a kick that was parried by his son. He threw his sword to the side, seeing as it was practically dead weight against a close quarters fighter like his son. Each strike was parried, by foot or fist depending on the combatant as gravity pulled them back to the ground. Jaune skidded to a landing beside Pyrrha while Johnathan crashed down, his fist impacting the earth like a super hero landing. The older Arc grinned viciously at his son who was breathing heavily. "What's wrong, can't keep up? I thought you were on my level." He picked up his discarded sword and stuck it back in the gauntlet sheath.

"Damn…" Jaune spat as he winced from the pain. His old wounds hadn't completely healed yet, even with aura augmenting the process. He could feel his bones cracking with each blow and his muscles screaming out in pain. He would have to end this quickly.

"Jaune," He turned to his partner who had a look of determination in her emerald eyes. "Let me help."

"Pyrrha he's…"

"I don't care!" Her scream practically stopped the momentum of the fight. Her fists were balled at her sides as she grit her teeth. "You're our leader… And he is your father, but you're my partner. I won't let you stand alone!" She cried out, blinking the tears away from her eyes with her declaration. She expected him to rebuke her, but was pleasantly surprised to see the gentle smile on her swirly brow'd leader's face.

"Then keep up." He put his leg out for her, "Or I guess I should try to." He chuckled to himself, "Get moving Pyrrha-swan." She nodded, hiding her blush from her partner before she hopped onto his leg. The toes of her boots pressed into his calf before he reared his leg back. "Armée de L'air…" His leg shot forward, sending the redhead flying at their opponent.

"MAGNUM SHOOT!" The two partners roared in unision. Pyrrha raised her shield arm as she reached closer to Johnathan, his gauntlet jerked out of the way of her high speed attack leaving him with only his Haki to defend himself. Sparks flew off his blackened skin as Pyrrha let out a scream of anger, spinning around and adding more force to her slash. The spinning attack left her highly disoriented and had her wobble into Ren who caught her. Nodding at his leader, the black haired member of JNPR gently placed the redhead on the ground. Johnathan fell to his knees, using his sword to prop himself up as he clutched the wound on his side.

"Not bad brats… Not bad." He chuckled, "But you still needed the little missy's help. As far as I'm concerned you're still weak."

"You think that's it?" Jaune asked, an eyebrow raised. "I already refused your refusal, guess I have to beat the meaning of that into your head."

"That doesn't even make sense." Johnathan said, "But fine… Come at me." He coated his whole body in Haki as he rushed in to meet Jaune's assault. His son's legs were completely encased in the black armor as sparks of blue lightning came off each hit that they parried. Though Johnathan took note to not block so many attacks as his bones were beginning to bruise against his son's assault. He had considered using Conqueror's again, but didn't think it would make a difference this time. His son wasn't backed into a corner any more, he was on the assault and looking for blood. He couldn't help but let a grin form on his face. Jaune was powerful, maybe just maybe he was wrong. Either way the next move would decide it. He raised his arms for a double handed strike and to knock his son down, it partially succeeded, if you count hitting a lighter as Jaune backflipped away to gain distance. He then ran in at his father, one leg scraping the ground before catching ablaze. Jaune then leapt at the elder Arc and he saw the look in his eye. Not one of contempt, but righteous anger. Johnathan let his smirk drop, he knew he had burned a bridge with his son. But he had to make sure he was prepared. Though he wondered was it worth it?

"JOUE SHOOT!" As the blazing kick delivered him to unconsciousness he found his answer. Yes, yes it was.

Seeing his father skid away into a smoking crater was far more satisfying than Jaune ever thought. Though maybe it was Sanji's influence seeping in. He looked at his team and waved them over with a weary smile. Pyrrha ran towards him, now distinctly less dizzy than before. Good, he felt bad about making her dizzy with his attack. Now he could rest.

"Jaune! Jaune!"

"I'll go get a medic."

—

Ozpin sighed as he walked up the grassy hill behind Beacon Academy. He had known of the fight last night but trusted Jaune to be able to rise to the challenge, and to his relief he was not proven wrong. He stopped walking and placed his coffee mug on the ground, removing the bundle from underneath his arm and placing it at the foot of a large stone. "It's been quite some time since I was last here. I know most of you hate dwelling on the past, but in times like this I feel I could use your guidance more than ever." He chuckled to himself, "And your friendship… I miss you dearly Basilla. Maybe if you hadn't perished then John wouldn't be so lost."

"Maybe," Port's normal jovial tone was absent and was actually quite somber for once. "Perhaps not. John followed his own path, as do we all."

"Peter," Ozpin nodded at his former teammate.

"Oz you cannot blame yourself for her death. You told me the same thing." Port said while shaking his head, as if admonishing his old friend. "Johnathan needs to realize that for himself too. And I think his boy did a right job of that." The sound of sticks crunching under foot drew their attention. The two huntsmen turned around and were greeted with the sight of their former teammate hobbling towards them. Too proud to use crutches, Johnathan leaned on the handle of his sword with each step.

"It's rude to talk about people when they're not around." He said with a dangerous chuckle, causing Ozpin to tighten his grip around his cane. Though the edge in his voice quickly faded. "Though you're right. Both of you." Ozpin raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry Oz."

"We all make mistakes, John." Ozpin said. "Perhaps I should have told you when your son came to my school."

"Nah, you were looking out for him." John turned his head to the side as his gaze drifted downward. "Better than I could." He mumbled.

"Jaune follows his own path, you can't force him to be like the rest of your family you know." Ozpin chuckled, "Well, I hope the bruises at least taught you that much."

"Ha ha, skinny little prick." Johnathan growled, rearing his fist back before the trio of huntsmen broke out into peels of laughter. They then fell into a comfortable silence as they paid respects to their fallen comrade. Perhaps had she survived the four of them would be getting drinks instead of looking over the cliff behind Beacon.

 **And that's where I end the arc. I'm going to avoid calling it that for the rest of this note because I made enough puns today, intentional or otherwise. So Jaune got his Haki on and we got the finish of the father v son fight. I was thinking of spreading it out over three chapters but felt it wasn't necessary since the next one is a cooldown/filler chapter. I had a lot of fun writing the Jaune vs Arc fight. And yes Rôtissoire is an original attack. Think of it like the kicking equivalent of Zoro's Tatsumaki. I was also considering having Ren learn some of the Rokushi techniques before the rematch but decided against it. Those techniques will take time for him to learn, even if he trains with Ozpin. For those of you who think I'm misogynstic for powering up Ren and Jaune but bodying Yang there's a reason. Yang is a brawler going against a seasoned huntsman. Every time she fought someone skilled she lost (Neo, Adam, Taiyang) and Pyrrha still did better than Ren during that fight. Each member of JNPR and RWBY have a role, where they fit and how soon it will become apparent does not coincide with my likes or dislike of any character. If it did then Weiss would have a far larger role right now than she does. Anyway guys, the time is upon us. Last chance to guess the Strawhat because they're going to appear next chapter.**

 **Aside from that thanks again you guys for the great support. Leave a review, follow n fave. Next chapter should be up in two weeks or so depending on schedule.**

 **Vargas out, peace.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Whats up boys and girls, this is flamelegendvargas with the next chapter. So first I'm doing review responses and then onto the bit from my notes.**

 **Guest: Yes his logic would seem a little flawed however he also _wanted_ it to be an insurmountable challenge for Jaune. He wanted it to be an ultimatium where he clearly stomped his son and got his way. But he was proven wrong, an unarmed combatant was able to force him to fight seriously and he was the one protecting his armed teammates. Two things that directly go against Johnathan's beliefs. He in no way wanted Jaune to beat him, however he accepted the loss at the very end when his son reached his level through his own means and by _not_ becoming like him. Great question though and I hope I clarified.**

 **Victor John Foxfire: So let me explain the Faunus real quick, not sure if I did this in an earlier chapter but I'm happy to answer anyway. In this story the Faunus are a sort of de-evolution of Minks caused by the crossbreeding of Minks and Humans. This led to them developing more human traits and losing most of their animal ones, including most of their innate abilities such as Electro. Some may have access to it depending on their own heritage, but it depends on their fighting spirit as well. Fishmen do still exist, as do Skypeians and Giants. The Grand Line is a big place after all.**

 **For anyone who wants to know who the third Straw Hat is, megaslayer321a got it. Go to their review and find out to your heart's content he heh! Now that we're finally at the last Straw Hat I decided that I'd be doing Omakes for each of the Straw Hats who _didn't_ make the cut barring Luffy and Chopper. The Omake will also include a note at the end explaining why I chose to not use that character.**

 **As for my notes, well I'm sorry to say that after this arc Vol.1 will be over. There's big things to cover in Volume 2 and I hope I can deliver on that front.**

It had been a week since Jaune's fight with his father. He had finally been cleared to leave the hospital, even though he was back to 100% by the third day. He briefly considered that it was because the healers were pissed off that he left before being cleared and this was his punishment. When he asked his team if Johnathan stuck around he was slightly relieved to hear he left only a note for his son.

 _Jaune,_

 _You have proved yourself to me. And more than that you have proven me wrong. Strive ever higher and make the Arc name proud. I know you can do it._

 _Love,_

 _Your father_

It was short and to the point, what more could he expect from his father. Jaune chuckled to himself as he balled up the note and tossed it into the garbage can. As the ball of paper flew, the door opened, revealing Blake and Pyrrha standing in the doorway. The reincarnate had changed her style since he was in the hospital wing. Instead of wearing a bow she had taken to wearing a black leather cowboy hat

"Jaune," Blake said with a nod to the blonde. "I see you're recovering."

He grinned, "I've been fine for days, Blake-chwan but thank you for worrying." The love tornado returned. However it quickly faded when Pyrrha smacked him on the back of the head. The action shocked both Straw Hats.

"Stop trying to act all macho, Jaune." The redhead scolded as she poked him in the ribs, causing him to flinch back.

"Yes Pyrrha-dear." Jaune said, slightly dejected. "How's Yang?"

"Angry." Blake chuckled again. Her partner was quite a hothead, much like the other blonde before her. "I don't particularly know why. Perhaps it's because she was thrown around by your father?"

"Losing to a Haki adept isn't something to be ashamed of." Jaune sighed, "I'll talk to her."

"Perhaps it's best if you just let her cool off on her own." Blake suggested.

"So this.. Haki?" Pyrrha asked, making sure she was pronouncing it correctly. "What is it? You mentioned it when we fought Johnathan." The reincarnates sent an uneasy gaze at each other a their smiles fell. Pyrrha huffed, looking between the two. "Well?"

"Jaune?" Blake asked, it wasn't her problem to explain it to someone who wasn't on her team. _He_ was Pyrrha's partner, not her.

"Blake you know I'm not that great at explaining stuff." Jaune groaned. "Haki is well… It's kind of the true potential of humans. Everyone has the ability to awaken it, just that not many people even know what it is let alone how to go about doing that." He rubbed at the cuffs of his jacket, desperately wishing to light a cigarette at the moment. He had to be careful not to let too much slip. "Basically there's 3 forms. The first is Observation, which is basically allowing you to sense almost anything, depending on how much you train it you could even see into the future a bit. The second…" He jumped off the bed and raised one leg, coating it in Armament Haki. "Is Armament. This is basically an armored layer of skin that you create by forcing your will outwards. The black coating around a limb is usually a give away of someone using it."

"However people like myself who have a weaker Armament than Observation will have no visible changes." Blake finished, giving the come at me gesture to Jaune.

"You know I won't do that." She sighed and then turned to Pyrrha who gave her a doubtful look. The redhead shrugged before punching the black haired girl square in the chest, only bruising her hand as a result.

"Wait that's two, what about the third?" Pyrrha asked.

"Ah…" Jaune sighed, "That's one I don't think we can show.

"So you both can use this power…" Pyrrha muttered, "How does one learn it?"

"My way is… Not reccomended for anyone who wishes to keep their sanity." Jaune shuddered, flashes of that hellish place came to mind.

"Oh it can't be worse than being ruthlessly beaten day after day while soaked in sea water." Blake waved him off.

"Emporio. Ivankov." He seethed, luckily Pyrrha was unable to hear the name uttered. However she didn't mind as now both were pale faced. She would face almost any hell for her team, _almost_ any.

"… Point taken." Blake sighed. "I take it you wish to learn?" She asked the red haired amazoness

Pyrrha nodded, "As soon as possible… I never want to feel that helpless again. Ren's actually getting help from Professor Ozpin personally, but if I can reach that level…"

"She makes a good point." Blake said, "Jaune I think we should teach our teams how to use it." Her scroll buzzed and the cat Faunus frowned. "Weiss… Says she wants to Vale to see the other students arriving for the Vytal Festival." Her scroll buzzed again, though this time the girl chuckled "Team captain's orders. I have to go. We'll talk more later, goodbye Mr. Chef." She then exited the room leaving Jaune and Pyrrha alone.

"So Jaune," Pyrrha asked with an eager smile.

"Of course I'll teach you Pyrrha-dear, or I'll at least try." Jaune said with a smile. "Awakening your Haki is something that you can only do for yourself though, but I'm sure you can do it."

"Great!" Pyrrha clapped her hands together, "Speaking of Vale. How would you feel about going to town as a team? We hardly have spent any time together this semester out of class."

"Hmm yeah that sounds good." Jaune grinned, "I know a place we can go for lunch. It's a little high end but let's just say I know a guy who knows a guy who'll get us in."

"That sounds grand. I'll tell Ren and Nora to meet us by the Bullheads." Pyrrha said with a smile.

—

Ren grunted in exertion as he pushed his leg muscles harder than he had before. If he didn't think Ozpin was deserving of his position as the Headmaster of Beacon, he was thoroughly convinced now on combat skill alone. The man hadn't even used a weapon and was sending blades of wind at him with just his kicks that Ren had to dodge with the technique he was learning. Ren had gotten the basics of Shave easily enough however his was still slower than Jaune and Ozpin. He was no slouch and he wondered how fast he would be compared to the two speed demons of the freshman class once he fully mastered this technique.

 _Shing_

A blade of wind carved into the wall behind him. _"Or maybe if I survive this training session."_ Ren gulped as he blurred from another volley of slashes. The beeping of the alarm set on Ozpin's scroll brought sweet relief to his aching leg muscles and cut up body.

"You did quite well Mr. Lie." Ozpin commented, "You picked up on Shave in only four days. I was right to believe this style would suit you quite well."

"Thank you professor. Those wind slashes, they are another technique of the Rokushiki correct?"

"Yes, Rankyaku or the Storm Leg. Its usage incorporates the teachings of Shave and two of the other techniques so you won't be learning it for a while." Ozpin chuckled at the slightly dejected look in Ren's eye. "Those other techniques are quite useful. In fact your leader uses one of them quite frequently." The ravenette perked up at that, the only technique Ozpin showed him that resembled how Jaune fought was Moonwalk, one he had secretly wanted to learn from the beginning… Sue a kid for wanting to fly, not everything has to be serious with Ren. "But that is for another time, get cleaned up Mr. Lie. And do try to enjoy yourself, it is the weekend." Ozpin said as he grabbed his cane and made his way out of the training room. Ren sighed and went into the locker room to shower. He checked his scroll and saw a message from Pyrrha.

"Hmm… Sure." Ren shrugged, typing 'ok' and then pressing send.

—

Team JNPR got to Vale around 1 in the afternoon. currently they were all dressed in much more casual clothes than their normal attire. Nora was wearing a black t shirt, a pink hoodie half zipped along with a gray skirt. Ren wore his combat clothes but had his weapons hidden under the tailcoats. Pyrrha had the most change in attire, wearing jeans and a red tank top along with sneakers. She still wore her circlet however. Jaune simply wore black jeans and a white hoodie with a pink and black stripe along with a small donut logo on the right. Seeing as Ren was coming from training and Jaune was released from the hospital wing a few hours prior they decided to get food first. Jaune, being the only one who had lived in Vale, was leading the group. They passed Dust till Dawn and went around the corner to the Gold Leaf which was just opening up for the day. Jaune pushed the glass door open and his team followed behind.

"Hello how many-" The receptionist asked, her eyes trailing up to meet Jaune's own. "Jaune! Oh my god it's so good to see you again!" She smiled, "Congrats on getting accepted into Beacon. Is this your team?"

"Good to see you again too Leah. The shitheads aren't giving you too much trouble are they?" Jaune asked with a grin while Leah laughed a little.

"No, not really."

"Good. And yeah this is my team, I'm actually the leader if you can believe that." Jaune chuckled, "Team JNPR."

"Hello," Pyrrha waved.

"Is that Pyrrha Nikos?" Leah whispered to Jaune, receiving a nod. The girl let out a tiny squeal, "Can you get me her autograph?" She asked, giving Jaune the puppy eyes.

"I'll see what I can do." He chuckled. Leah then led the team to a table near the window and left to go grab menus for them.

"I'm surprised Jaune, where did you get the money to take us to a restaurant like this?" Ren asked. Leah quickly returned with the menus.

"Your waiter will be out shortly." She said with a smile before walking off, "Oh and Jaune, don't forget." She said with a wink and a grin.

"I worked here," Jaune chuckled, "I was the Sous Chef for a few years. Then one night a girl wearing a red cloak was fighting a shitty-crook and well, here I am." Jaune explained as he looked out the window with a small smile. It had only been a few months since then. The night he took _his_ first step to his dream, slowly stepping out of the shadow of Sanji and in a way standing side by side.

"I take it you mean Ruby?" Ren asked

"Yeah, so what made you guys choose Beacon?" Jaune asked with a grin.

"Ooh ooh me!"

"Yes Nora?" Jaune asked with a strained smile. He was wrong, that girl was _worse_ than Luffy. His moral code would let him kick the crap out of Luffy, but Nora was safe… For now.

"Yay!" The energetic ginger stopped waving her hand and pumped her fist, "So I came here because apparently someone paid for me and Ren's tu…Ren what's the word again?" Nora asked before putting a finger to his lips, "Nevermind too slow. School money! Yeah. He paid for it, Ozpin couldn't say who he was. He just said he wanted to see how skilled we were, which is weird." Nora rambled, "Ooh Pyrrha! you go!"

"Well I really came to make sure Nora didn't destroy… Too much." Ren said before waving his hand in Pyrrha's direction, "Your turn."

"Well, I chose Beacon…" Pyrrha gulped, "I chose Beacon to try to get away from the fame." She finally said. Her teammates looked confused and shocked, barring Jaune who nodded in understanding.

"But why? Isn't it super awesome being famous?" Nora asked

"At first yes… But everyone puts you on a pedestal." Pyrrha sighed, "Nobody thinks they're good enough to approach you, and soon they hate you because of your skill."

"Screw em, Pyrrha-swan… Not literally." Jaune coughed with a slight flush, one that Pyrrha matched. "Besides we look past the fame. Even though it does make you more amazing Pyrrha-swan." Jaune finished with a grin.

"He's right," Ren nodded, "I think we all know first hand that you're not the invincible girl they all make you out to be." The team shared a small chuckle at that. Pyrrha looked around at her friends and smiled, they truly didn't care. It felt nice, being normal, as normal as one can get when a huntsman. Their server came shortly after and took their oder and the conversation continued.

"-So then I dyed Ren's hair when he was asleep and that's why he's got pink hair." Nora finished her story, grinning widely while Ren sat with his head in his hands. Yes she had a good team, and a great leader… If only he wasn't so reckless.

—

Blake sighed as she walked behind a stormy Yang, still with one arm in a sling mind you, and a determined Weiss. Ruby ran to keep up with them but Blake had other things on her mind, that boy… When she used her Observation he had a similar aura to her father, something she hadn't seen before. Ruby had seen him run into Borsalino street and the RWY of RWBY looked through the crowd. Meanwhile Blake had used her Devil Fruit to bring her up to the roof of one of the buildings to observe.

Down below Ruby continued her search, looking left and right as she bumped into what felt like a brick wall and falling to the ground. The young leader of Team RWBY looked up to see an orange haired girl wearing a white sports bra, a gray jacket and a strange black choker with neon green lines along with shorts and combat boots.

"Ow, sorry." Ruby groaned, the girl bent down and offered a hand which Ruby took. "Thanks, I'm Ruby."

"Penny, but shhh. Big bro's show's about to start!" The orange haired girl said with a grin.

"Your brother? But where's he going to perform?" Ruby asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Pfeheehee that's a secret only big bro knows. But we'll see when he starts." The girl explained excitedly. The steady beat of a drum began before picking up and the orange haired girl started grinning widely. "He's starting!"

"Hey guys I have a question. Did somebody say my name?" A voice boomed over the drum. People in the street looked around, trying to find where the music and voice were coming from.

"There!" A woman cried out, pointing to one of the rooftops. Everyone's gaze followed her finger to where an impromptu stage was set up with a white sheet as the curtain. Behind the sheet was a silhouette of a man who appeared to be dancing. The man's hand reached forward, grasping the sheet before tearing it off and throwing it off to the side.

"What is he wearing?" Ruby heard Weiss call out in a disgusted tone. She looked up and saw the man, no longer hidden by the sheet. He wore no shoes and had metal plating on his bare legs, to cover himself he wore a black speedo and a white button down shirt with the sleeves torn off and a gold chain. His blue hair was slicked back in an almost pompadour-like style and wore sunglasses. The strangest features of the man, barring the speedo, were his tri-cleft chin and metal nose.

"Come on everybody no need to be shy, say my name!"

"FRANKY!" Penny screamed, jumping up and down.

"I'm Water 7's number one super guy! The face of the underworld and you know why! The man with the plan, the power and fame! Uwoooow! And people everywhere call out my name!" He lowered his body as he continued his dance, "FRRRRAAAAAAANKY!" He finished by clasping his forearms together above his head in a rather _Super_ pose.

Down below Penny mirrored his pose with a megawatt grin while a thoroughly confused Ruby stood off to the side.

"So sis did you like the show?" Penny asked.

"Y-yeah, but what was that?" The wide eyed leader of RWBY asked, trying to decide if she should repress the memory or embrace it… Something to ask Yang, or Jaune. Jaune like Yang when Yang wasn't around, and he made cookies!

"That was just big bro Franky showing off his super moves. He wanted to let Vale know he was here." Penny giggled, "Dad is going to be so mad." Her mood then did a complete 180 as she slouched her shoulders.

"So he's your actual brother. Got it." Ruby said with a nod.

"Ruby! Ruby!" The silver eyed huntress heard her sister calling her name.

"Well I gotta go, that's my sister." Ruby chuckled awkwardly, "Bye friend!" The awkward ravenette slipped through the crowd to where her sister was standing with Weiss. The irate heiress was tapping her foot impatiently and had her arms crossed.

"Let's get out of here Ruby, it's obvious that rapscallion vanished into the crowd." The Schnee huffed, "I suppose any good criminal would know how to hide their tracks."

"And any good businessman, like your father." Blake said, standing up from a crouching position. She then pulled her open Scroll out of her pocket and pressed the send button. "Sorry I thought our friends in JNPR would find it interesting so I got a better view of the… show." The incognito cat Faunus snickered. Oh Jaune would have a field day with this.

"YOU SUPER BASTARD!" Queue the eruption of flames… Oh there he is, unlocking his Haki once more increased his speed by a lot. Oh and Ren just tumbled into a heap of other people coming out of a burst of Shave of all things… Hmm more things for Robin's reincarnate to question the Headmaster about. The raven haired member of JNPR panted as he caught his breath, his hands on his knees for support.

"Yeesh, you ok Ren?" Yang asked with a wince, the boy looked to also be covered in soot.

"I got caught in the afterburn of Jaune's Geppo mixed with his fire semblance." Ren sighed.

"I believe Jaune calls his version Sky Walk, it's more versatile in my opinion but specific to the way he fights." Blake pointed out.

"Can we just talk about how the playboy chef is flying?" Weiss asked.

"Super Martial Arts/Because he's not a Schnee." Blake and Ren answered at the same time, one smirking… You can guess which one. Weiss scowled at her teammate for the comment.

"The explanation you gave Nora?" Blake asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No, it's what she called it. I figured it would be the easiest explanation to give to others." He whispered back. Ozpin had stressed the importance of keeping the true nature of the Rokushiki a secret. A branch of techniques once held by the most feared assassins in the world. He then paled, realizing that he had entrusted this information to one of the two people he knew who most definitely did not need super destructive techniques.

"So what happened with Jaune?" Yang asked. Her eyes slightly narrowed.

"Well…"

—

(13 Minutes Ago)

Jaune was in the middle of cutting his Filet Mignon when he got the text from Blake marked urgent with a little skull and crossbones emoji at the front of the message. Jaune immediately placed his silverware on the table. He and Blake had agreed that emoji would be used for anything Straw Hat related back at the beginning of the semester. Having actual communication devices instead of Den Den Mushi was incredibly useful. He was confused to find what appeared to be a video of a public performance. Nora peered grabbed his arms and tilted the scroll so she could get a view of it. Jaune's eyes widened and he nearly lost his grip on the scroll, as did Blake, when it was revealed just _who_ was doing it. He couldn't believe it, another one of those crazy bastards… _"WHY COULDN'T IT BE NAMI-SWAN?"_ The chef reincarnate cried internally before gaining a confused look at his introduction. Did he think he was still living at the Franky House? Did… He forget being a Straw Hat? No, that was impossible. He may have not been there as long as the mosshead, the shitty… Sniper King _"I suppose I'll give him that…"_ , himself and Nami-swan but he was one of them. If Enies didn't prove it then Sabaody definitely did.

"Jaune…" Pyrrha said, noticing the look in his eye.

"Sorry Pyrrha-dear." Jaune said with a sad smile. He really did enjoy spending this time with the team. They weren't quite the Straw Hats but…

The curly eyebrowed blonde grabbed his scroll from Nora, "I… Have to go take care of something quickly. Don't worry I already paid for the meal for us. And it's not life threatening I swear." Jaune said with a shaky grin, "It's _super_ important though so I'm sorry ladies… and sort of Ren, but I gotta go." The suit wearing member of JNPR then excused himself from the table and slipped out of the restaurant. He also ignored the middle finger Ren raised while smirking, he knew the other male enjoyed their occasional verbal spars much more than Zoro so it was friendly. It helped that Ren was at least sensible unlike the moss for brains… Thank Goda that

Ren did the same, however neither girl noticed he was gone until they looked in his direction. Pyrrha sighed, it was strange she didn't even see him move.

With Jaune the blonde was walking out the door calmly lighting a cigarette. After taking a drag his entire body ignited with the power of Diable Jambe. _"YOU SUPER BASTARD!"_ He bellowed as he took off like an angry comet towards the rooftop that Franky was located on. Once reaching high above the buildings he applied Haki to his legs to boost his speed using Sky Walk. He allowed himself to hang in the air for a moment as he used his Observation to pick out Franky's voice. _There_. With a direction in mind Jaune shot towards the roof with a blazing kick. He skid along the rooftop for a few moments, flames trailing behind him and burning the sheet that haphazardly hung off the side of the makeshift stage.

"Ch, so what's your deal huh punk?" Franky growled, his shades slipping onto his face and masking his glare. "Can't stand another guy in the spotlight?"

"Not when he's got as bad of a sense of style as you." Jaune shot back. "So Franky, Water 7… Doesn't sound like it's near Vale at all."

"Destroyed, long time ago." Franky sighed, "I'm still the boss o' the underground till the day I die…" The blue haired men clenched his fists and pounded one against his chest. "Those bozos may be gone but I rep their spirits on my back!" Franky grinned, "So if you got a problem with me shoutin' out to the heavens… Then put 'em up."

"It wouldn't be a Straw Hat reunion without a few fists flying." Jaune chuckled as he raised his leg and entered his Muay-Thai-like stance for Diable Jambe.

"Straw Hat reuinion? You with those chumps?" Franky asked as his right fist shot out on a chain, on the inside of his arm Jaune could see the tattoo of the word Strong.

"What's it, TO YOU!" Jaune grunted as one of the swings from Franky's Strong right collided with his leg. He had to hand it to the Shipwright, he was as strong, and tricky as ever. Using the randomness of swinging his fist like a flail negated Jaune's Haki granted precog, if only slightly.

"Heh," The chain recoiled and the fist snapped back into place. "Just kind of funny is all." Franky placed his palms directly behind him and twin jets of fire shot out, propelling him towards the reincarnate. "Last thing I remember 'for old man Merlot fixed me up was ripping off some long nose that said he was one of you. Small world, ain't it." He grit out as his fist collided against Jaune's leg. Sparks flew off the limbs and the resulting shockwave from the clash sent them both back and destroyed the stage in the process.

"Oh… So it was you." Jaune chuckled, lowering his head to give him a more menacing look, while also hiding the shocked look plastered across his face. Franky clearly remembered his past life, just not being a Straw Hat. How could this be? He and Blake remembered everything perfectly from the moment they were reborn… Reborn, Franky wasn't reborn. He was _rebuilt_. He didn't remember because the saves weren't there. Jaune grinned, he'd beat the memories into the wayward shipwright. He supposed he could play the angry, vengeful friend for now. Though now that he thought about it… They never did pay back Franky, only his underlings. With a savage grin Jaune scraped his foot against the floor and ran towards his robotic adversary once more. He looked the former cyborg in the eye and saw a grin on his face, and an inflation in his lower body. Jaune, now wide eyed tried to back away as best as possible however he could not slow his momentum.

"Later, Straw Hat flunky!" Franky grinned as jumped up, "Coup… De… BOO!" And with that the blue haired man shot off, cackling madly as he escaped his fart caused explosion. Those watching from the ground could only speculate as to who won that fight, and who was disgusting enough to turn a fart into an attack?

Jaune grimaced as he held his hood to his face. The smell of methane and burnt cloth permeated the air. The bottom half of his hoodie was blackened and smoldering while his jeans were torn and burnt in various places. As the smoke cleared the blonde noticed that his former ally was nowhere in sight. He sighed, reaching into his pocket and grabbing another cancer stick. He leaned down to where the stage once stood and used the remaining flames to light it. He could sense Blake and Ren down below with the rest of Team RWBY and could tell that Pyrrha and Nora were closing in fast.

"Eh they'll last for a few minutes." With a shrug the blonde got back to smoking his cigarette. He sat on the edge of the rooftop, half watching his legs dangle but mostly letting his mind wander. Franky was dangerous, extremely dangerous. Especially if he only remembered robbing Usopp. He also seemed to have some new tricks, though admittedly Jaune had not seen the full extent of Franky's arsenal after they reunited so he wasn't entirely sure. Rocket hands didn't seem like a Franky thing to do though, he would probably have gone for miniature radical beams… Or rather just being able to fire radical beams with only one hand. Maybe this Franky was part of Atlas? He did say Merlot after all. The blonde sighed, deciding that he would let Blake deal with the smart people stuff. Give him enemies any day over planning moves. Seeing as he was at the end of his cigarette, the blonde reincarnate tossed it to the side before hopping off the building. He used Sky Walk to soften his descent to a float as he gently landed in between Weiss and Blake who were now glaring heatedly at one another.

"What do you mean it's no big deal that we lost him? He probably is going to his White Fang superiors to report a successful Dust heist!" The white haired girl screeched.

"You're making assumptions Ms. Schnee. And I would prefer you not to use the White Fang's name to base such claims." Blake responded, her tone cold like the black blade she wielded.

"And why shouldn't I use the name of a criminal _Faunus_ group when talking about a, now hear me out… _Criminal Faunus_!" The heiress asked incredulously. "It's almost like you're defending them."

"And why wouldn't I defend the name of a group my father founded? One he founded for the protection of our people, our people who were pushed down… Enslaved by yours." The black haired girl responded, her sharp teeth bared as her amber eyes bore into the soul of the heiress. "You don't get to judge. _Schnee_." The catgirl snarled, whipping her body around before walking away. A hand caught her wrist and she looked at Jaune who had a worried look on his face. "Let go, Mr. Chef." Her tone strained.

Jaune looked at her with a sad smile and _that damn look in his eyes_. The same look he and the others had that day… That day they stood against the world. He wouldn't stop her, he couldn't. Robin would have ran from the conflict to avoid the pain, Blake simply wanted to get away from it. Something his past life as Sanji forced him to respect, out of the desire to not be a hypocrite if nothing else. The other reincarnate gave a dry chuckle at that before wrangling her arm free from his grasp and leaving.

"Nice going Jaune." Yang snorted.

"Not the time." Ren shot back, his eyes narrowed.

—

It was dark now, the teams had spent the entire day searching for Blake only to come up with nothing. Jaune couldn't even sense her with his Haki, attributing it to Blake's higher skill with Observation Haki allowing her to mask her presence from him. Either way it didn't matter. They needed to find her, and answers. Without telling the others the two male members from JNPR set off separately to meet up with the man they each believed would hold them.

"So, nice night." Jaune said awkwardly as he stood outside the elevator to Ozpin's office. Ren leaned against a column opposite to the door.

"Indeed, why are you seeing the headmaster?" Ren asked.

"Just ah… Wanted to ask him something. You?"

"Training." Ren said simply, effectively killing the conversation. Luckily the elevator arrived then, allowing the two to "enjoy" the uncomfortable silence of the ride. When the elevator dinged, signaling their arrival in Ozpin's office Jaune was the first one out. Jaune was surprised to hear a familiar voice singing.

 _"In war there are no do-overs-"_ The music stopped abruptly as Ozpin pressed a button on his desk.

"Can I help you gentlemen? It is quite late after all." Ozpin said with a distinctly tired smile.

"Cut the crap Ozpin, I know you know more than you let on." The elder huntsman raised an eyebrow at the blonde's accusation. "Blake told me you knew about her Fruit. I don't really care about who you are unless it's Judge-"

"Who I assuredly am not."

"Right. You would have skewered my ass if you were." Jaune noted, "What I want is for you to help us find Blake. And if you know what she can do…" Flames erupted around the blonde, "Trust me… I'm much worse." The air was tense. No occupant of the room made a move.

"Mr. Arc I'll excuse it this once but do not threaten me. General Ironwood has tried and he brings a far more impressive showing of firepower than you." Ozpin said, his voice calm yet his words carried an air of power to them. One Jaune hadn't felt since the New World. He let the flames die down after that. "Good. Now I do not know where Ms. Belladona is. My range is only to the edge of the Emerald Forest, and unless our friend has decided to take up refuge there then I cannot help any further."

"But you're the headmaster, surely you can-" Ren spoke up but was silenced by Ozpin.

"I am the headmaster, yes. I could find her, yes. But to find her I would need to leave Beacon to do so, for many hours. It would set a bad precedent if the headmaster of a combat school cannot be bothered to be present."

"So you'll just let her go?"

"Ms. Belladona chose to come here, she can choose to not come back if she so wishes." Ozpin sighed, "Though it is my belief she will come back in time."

"Ch, whatever… Shitty old men. C'mon Ren." Jaune growled, heading to the elevator.

"Where are you going?" His pink and black haired teammate asked as the elevator car went down.

"Answers." Jaune replied, "If Ozpin won't help, then I know a guy in Vale who will… Just hope he forgave me for quitting the restaurant." Jaune chuckled awkwardly at that.

—

Franky sighed as he spun the revolving dust chambers of his Weapons Left. He had used Coup De Boo at an awkward angle, causing some of the wirings to get messed up. Not that he minded, changing the dumb 'upgrades' that Doc Merlot added. He was lucky the doc didn't switch him to being dust powered instead of cola powered otherwise he wouldn't even have an arm to repair. He did admire the doc's advancements in the robotics community, but that was it. He didn't have any flair, any style. Seriously the dress he had little sis in… Franky shuddered just thinking about it. So not super.

"All ready big bro. That blondie really put in work huh?" Penny commented, leaning over his makeshift workbench with a grin. "Bet you beat him real good huh?" The shorter girl let out a huff as she lifted the chamber into his empty forearm that was held above by a heavy chain. Franky then grabbed the limb with his right and twisted it around until he heard a click and a hiss. He then flexed his fingers, making sure there were no mistakes. Super.

"Heh… I got something special for him if we see him again." Franky chuckled. "Straw Hat bastards…" That name… What bugged him about that name? Even calling them bastards didn't feel right, felt like he was lying. But that couldn't be. They were lost their money and got pissy, that's that. But why did the blonde act like he knew him?

—

Blake gazed over the bright city of Vale, idly comparing it to the sparsely lit Menagerie. When had that become her home? When had she started considering herself Blake Belladona of Menagerie instead of Nico Robin of Ohara? Maybe it was for the best, to leave that life behind. _"Or at least most of it."_ Memories of the blonde chef crossed her mind. She wondered if she should try to make amends with her team. She didn't mind Ruby, Yang was a pleasure when her jokes were good and Weiss, well she had her problems but she was just a child. They all were. All of them besides her and Jaune. And that is why she ran, why she was afraid. She would not subject her team to the hell she endured away from the Straw Hats. She wouldn't be able to take it if she had to watch them die again.

 **So a little shorter than I'd like. I'm working on writing longer chapters without making them drag too much. Hopefully in Vol.2 I'll be doing 8-10k chapters for normal and 12-15k for big chapters. Honestly it's a bit of touch and go but I'll keep improving so that I can provide the best story possible for you guys.**

 **Anyway so the last Straw Hat is Franky. Now some of you might be wondering, why not Zoro or Luffy. And I say, well sucks for you because Franky was decided before even Robin-Blake. I wanted Franky in from the beginning. I had originally wanted it to be Jaune alone as a Straw Hat until the end of the volume, but when I thought about Blake I couldn't help but see her as Robin. Anyway the main thing is that Franky benefits the most from Remnant. Him, Usopp and Nami. Why would Zoro use Dust? I mean Chopper could but I'd also have to give him the Human-Human Fruit. Trust me, Blake's the only one who had an easy time getting her old curse. Also because he was a cyborg I didn't have to revive him conventionally. For those who didn't get it, Franky thinks he died in the Aqua Laguna and Merlot helped rebuild him. This'll cause some problems for Jaunji along with the whole Blake thing.**

 **Now I believe I promised an Omake. The next one is one I've been working on since chapter 1 so it'll be around 2000 words instead of 500.**

 _"Yohohoho~yohoho"_

Flynt hummed to himself as he walked down the hallway leading to the arena floor of the Vytal festival. He ignored the faint buzzing of his scroll in his pocket as he adjusted his bowtie and top hat. His style of dress was somewhat strange for a huntsman, but accepted by Atlas because it displayed proper decorum. Of course he would always dress proper, or at least fashionable, he was still a gentleman after all.

 _"Flynt match starts in 2 minutes! Hurry up come on come on!"_ Neon's irate voice rang out from his Scroll.

"Apologies Ms. Neon, I guess I didn't have my eye on the time, not that I have eyes to begin with… Oh wait I do have eyes now." Flynt gave a sad sigh, "No skull joke." He slumped momentarily.

 _"You're weird Flynt but it's cool! You're funny!"_

Flynt chuckled at the irony of that. Neon calling him weird.

He quickly arrived at the underground level of the stage where Neon was already waiting on the platform. There was a large wall dividing the ring into two halves, probably to make it so the fighters wouldn't be able to see their opponents and strategize beforehand. He shrugged to himself, no worries. No matter how strong one might be they all fall to the chill of the underworld. He let a grin spread across his face as the panels above opened and their platform was raised up to the arena proper. He glanced at Neon to make sure she was prepared, the girl was practically bouncing on her feet in excitement for the match. He then glanced down at his own weapon, a violin and a cane. A choice many would find strange, though to him it gave him a sense of belonging. Standing across from him was a dark haired girl with a peculiar, yet familiar fashion sense. she wore a black cowboy hat and a black leather vest over a white top and black skintight pants leading into boots. The girl next to her though, Flynt recognized. A Schnee.

"Contestants!" The announcer's voice boomed as the wheel spun to decide their battlefield.

"Yohoho you're Weiss Schnee, right?" Flynt called out to the white haired girl. "The heiress," His tone was mocking to the extreme, though he couldn't help it. Even with his past memories he couldn't shake the grudge against her family.

"Yes I am," Weiss answered with a pleasant smile. A fake one, typical of Atlasian nobles.

"I take it you're pretty good with dust then."

"I do my best." Weiss answered with a nonchalant shrug her shoulders. The black haired girl to her side groaned in annoyance.

"My father was quite good with dust as well." Flynt said, his hat shadowing his eyes as he put his violin in the holster on his waist, "Until your father ran him out of business."

"Oh I'm so sorry…" The white haired girl apologized. She then took a step back in fear as Flynt appeared right in front of her, a menacing gaze in his eyes.

"If you are truly sorry…" He whispered, "Then may I see your panties?" And the world stopped. The eyes of the combatants were all on him, one pair in disgust, one with amusement and the other… Recognition?

"LIKE HELL!" Weiss roared as she punched Flynt so hard he tumbled back into Neon. Port and Oobleck took that as a sign to start the match. Flynt was lucky he was quick on his feet or he would have been skewered by the lightning fast stabs that the Schnee sent his way. He could appreciate her style, it was similar to his own though with a rapier instead of a shikomizue. He would reciprocate in kind. With a calm expression he blocked her next attack with the cane, and using the tip of her rapier he pushed the sheath up and off of the blade with his downward swing.

"You are quite strong." Flynt commented, holding the sheath in his other hand, now parrying her attacks.

"Flattery won't save you!" Weiss snarled as her dust chamber spun, releasing a gout of flames in his direction.

"Why don't you… chill." Flynt said in a dull tone, drawing his violin. "Frigid Note." He intoned, slicing his blade across the violin. The flames dissipated, leaving a stunned Weiss. "Yohoho sorry did you think you had a monopoly on dust combat?" He chuckled, though his eyes quickly widened as giant arms burst from the ground, trying to grab or hit him. He looked to the other girl, the black haired one, and saw her arms were crossed and her eyes closed as she ducked and weaved under whatever attack Neon sent her way. Flynt nodded in understanding, she was the one he was to truly do this duet with. "Sorry it had to end so soon," He said as he walked past Weiss towards Blake and Neon.

"What do you…" A slash tore through Weiss's body as Flynt sheathed his sword.

"Three-Verse Humming." He said calmly as the white haired girl fell to her knees, "Arrow-Notch Slash." He sighed, looking back at the girl. Perhaps he was too rough with her, no it was a battle. And she was a Schnee. She brought this upon herself. Flynt made his way to his new opponent. His legs picking up speed as he pushed his blade forward with a shout of, "Aubade Coup: Droit!" which disrupted the flow of combat between Neon and Blake. He would apologize to his teammate later, after he had found out what he needed. The girl closed in with her blade, clashing against Flynt. Their weapons sung the song of their battle, their reunion. Oh he could see who the girl was clearly now, and berated himself for not seeing it sooner. It was his third life after all, he should be an old hand at this.

"You are quite good," The girl commented, raising one arm to have two more sprout from the ground to hold Flynt in place for her next attack. However the next thing she felt was a cold unease, while Flynt's body fell lifeless for a moment before he sprung back into action, and kicked away the arms holding him down.

"I was once one of the best soldiers in my kingdom's army." The musician chuckled, "Just as you were once an archeologist." Now it was the girl's turn to gape in shock. "Yohoho" He said again, this time with a clear grin on his face. One that was matched by the girl.

—

After the match the long lost crewmates reunited, all four of them. They sat under a tree on Beacon Academy's grounds with content smiles on their faces. Flynt played his violin, Franky with his guitar, Blake sitting off to the side enjoying a cup of tea and Sanji preparing some food over a grill that Port had lent them. The blonde leader of JNPR looked over his friends, his family, who after so long he began to feel as if was finally coming together once more.

"You truly don't remember our journey, Franky?" Flynt asked, "Yohoho, to lose the memory of ones comrades, it makes me want to cry… Though I don't suppose I-no I do actually have eyes now."

"You're a super weird dude, Flynt." Franky chuckled, "Nah I don't remember, but I'm still rollin' with you crazies so that's gotta say something."

"I don't take kindly to being called crazy, Mr. Pervert… Unless I'm being called crazy by a man who has nipple lights." Blake said in a positively dead tone.

"Didn't do that on this body. Plus they sound super useful." Franky said with a grin.

"Dinner's ready, shitty bastards… And Blake-swan!" Jaune called out with a grin on his face that was quickly replaced by his standard love tornado. He soon brought over the dishes and the friends, no crew, they were still a crew, ate happily. They laughed, drank and sung all night.

 _"Gather up all of the crew~"_ Franky, Brook and Jaune sang, a healthy blush on their faces. Blake stood off to the side, softly humming the same tune.

 _"It's time to ship out Binks' Brew… Sing a song and play along for all the oceans wide,"_ Blake's soft melodic voice took over and the others fell silent.

 _"After all is said and done, you'll end up a skeleton,"_ Flynt belted out with a grin, one matched by the comrades who remembered his days as one.

 _"So spread your tale from dawn 'til dusk upon these foamy seas."_

 _"Yo hohoho, yo hohoho…"_ The song grew louder as all four joined in once more, smiles matching on all their faces. For the first time in 18 years, Jaune could say he was finally home.

 **Like I said, short. I just wanted to give Brook some time. The conclusion of he and Blake's battle is up in the air… for plot reasons. Personally I think Brook could beat Robin in a close quarters match but I don't feel like writing that because of the other plot implications of that happening. So instead you get him bum rushing Weiss like Tararan and then a little Straw Hat family time at the end. Now into my thought process we go. Brook's an interesting character and by far my favorite Strawhat. His Yomi Yomi no Mi made him a crazy opponent and he was also a swordsman of at least decent (by Zoro standards) skill. However like I said before, I had already decided on the 3 Straw Hats by the time I started chapter 1. I felt that adding Brook would feel like it was too much and would make the cast too big. Anyway next up on my list of degenerate reincarnates is… Nami! Get ready for next time, cuz it'll be fun. Also this is my first Omake, I'm not sure how good I am at writing them. Any feedback would be welcome, provided it actually includes ways to get better and not simply saying something along the lines of "fuck your story".**

 **For my fellow 'Murikanz, happy belated Fourth. Hope y'all had as much fun shooting off fireworks where you shouldn't as I did. And if you didn't well there's net year. Anyway that's all for this chapter, I'll see you guys when I drop the next one. Hopefully I'll be able to get back on schedule now.**


	7. Chapter 7

**S'up nerds you miss me? Yeah me neither. Sorry I had some real world stuff going on that pushed everything back by a fucking while. I recently posted the first chapter of another story but that ain't what you(and me) want. You want to learn how to cook a Grimm, and I will teach y'all! Rejoice brothers for I have returned to show the way. Anyway onto a few reviews.**

 **VoyagersUnite: Real men aren't afraid to cry when Brook sings Binks' Brew. Seriously dude that scene of him singing while all his friends died around juxtaposed with the lively Straw Hat party that was going on while he sang for them, it was pretty amazing and sad. I'm actually surprised I got that sort of reaction out of anyone, thanks :D**

 **Guest: Funny story about that, I was going to have Mr. 5 sneeze in hell… And blow himself up. But yeah Franky was the upcoming Straw Hat. Unless I go add Brook, that's all the Straw Hats we'll be getting until AT LEAST Vol.3 (Though that's not to say anything about other reincarnates)**

 **Coco: Thanks for pointing out the error. I thought that Merlot built Penny, since he's like the only named scientist, but I was wrong. So I'll change that little detail to make my story better. I'd love to see how you would write a story that isn't "super stupid" as you put it, but it seems you don't write.**

Down at the warehouse district of Vale, Roman Torchwick paced back and forth between the crates of dust, checking his Scroll every so often. "Come on, come on." He muttered to himself. "Where the hell is she?" He tapped away at his device, unaware of the shadow of a woman sneaking up behind him.

"Is there a problem, Roman?" The dark haired woman, Cinder Fall, asked as she approached from the shadows, causing Roman to spin around on his heel with a shocked expression. Roman had to admit, she was quite a pretty bird. Long dark wavy dark hair, perfect figure, and the gold eyes weren't a bad touch either. If only she weren't such a crazy bitch. Or if she didn't always smell like she walked out of a furnace full of dead bodies… Which was always. The woman was crazy.

"Actually, there is." His normally jovial and sarcastic tone was all but gone, replaced by cold indifference. "We had a deal." The crime lord said while pointing an accusing finger at Cinder. "I get the dust, you give me the blueprints and the parts I need."

"And I gave you the blueprints." She says, pointing to the giant roll of blue paper that was propped up against the table.

Roman grabbed the roll and sighed, "Yeah, so where are the parts I asked for?" He pointed around to the ludicrously high stacks of dust being moved in by men in dark suits. "I got almost all the dust in this city and I don't see the _only_ things I asked for in return. That's bad business Cinder."

"You don't need them." Cinder said with a shrug, "I don't know where you learned of those outdated devices but you can recreate it all with Dust." She then rolled her eyes at him, "Besides the tests we had done showed it would fail spectacularly anyway."

"That wasn't the deal. don't fuck me." Roman lowered his gaze, shadowing his eyes with his bowler cap and giving the suit wearing redhead a menacing look.

"The parts are on their way, I was simply making a point." Cinder said without a care in the world for Roman's plight as she went to doing more important things… Like checking her nails.

"If I wanted a simple dust weapon I would stick with my cane."

"Then do that. My lady doesn't really care about the progress on your weapon. So long as your progress in other areas remains unimpeded." Cinder said with a raised eyebrow and pointed look. "Are you going to question me again?" She asked, flames licking at the bottom of her dress as her eyes lit up like miniature hellfires. Roman shrunk back and shook his head in a negative, pleasing the villainess. "Good. Now did you find the weapon _I_ asked for?" Roman responded by heading to one of the crates and opening it. Inside was a sleek metal case wrapped in some of the heaviest duty chains Roman had ever seen. And he's seen a lot of chains.

"Yeah we found it. Are you sure we need this thing?" Roman asked, shifting around in his footing. His face was a little paler as he remembered the _thing_ that was sealed within. That _thing_ had no earthly right to be alive. So of course Cinder and her scissor sister wanted it, right?

"Not quite yet." Cinder admitted, "Though it would be nice to field test it. After the last of the dust is extracted we'll release our new friend at the docks." Cinder turned away from Roman as the sound of footsteps echoed off the floor. "And on time as always," Cinder said, gesturing to the man in the shadows. As he stepped out, Roman knew one thing. The man loved his edgy colors. Black and red suit with a design of some sort, blood red hair, a Grimm-like mask that was commonplace among the White Fang, and a katana that rested in a beautiful black sheathe with a gold dragon coiling around the polished wood. In his left hand was a large briefcase, though not nearly as secure as the one Roman brought out.

"Was I just not edgy enough for you?" Roman snorted at Cinder, peering at the similarities between he and the edgy man's style of dress. "But seriously ah… Who is this guy?" Roman asked, rotating his hand as if to tell Cinder or the man to speak up.

"This guy," The man snarled, "Can speak for himself. You may call me Adam Taurus. Cinder has approached me with an alliance between the White Fang and her faction." He had to calm himself before speaking again. It would do him no good to eviscerate his… business partners just yet. With an arrogant smirk the Faunus spoke, "I hope that this will be proof enough of my intent." Adam placed the briefcase on the ground and with a click it opened. Roman's eyes lit up with glee as a wide grin spread across his face.

"Adam boy I believe this is the start of a beautiful friendship." The master thief said to the mass murderer after slinging an arm around the radical Faunus's shoulder like they were old friends. Roman ignored the squirming from the other red head and the growling coming from the bull Faunus's throat.

"Don't touch me, naked ape (If y'all can guess where I picked that from you get a robot)." Adam said before elbowing Roman in the gut and causing the prissy man to double over.

"Yep… Great friendship." Roman said through his wheezes as he put up a shaky thumbs up to show he was ok.

After Adam walked outside of the warehouse he made his way to the area he had his men land the helicopter. This was progress. Ever since his teacher had betrayed them he had done everything in his power to rebuild the White Fang's power. Instating Sienna Khan as leader had been the first step, he was too young and reckless. Traits that many of the old guard would not want in a leader. With Sienna they would trust her words, and if not they will be crushed. At a young age he learned it was a dog eats dog world, they would learn as he did. The humans would all learn. The time for them to become the prey is coming and soon. "And I cannot wait." Adam muttered to himself, "Soon my love… I will bring you back into the fold."

—

Blake yawned as she woke up in Tukson's flat on the couch. It was not comfortable at all, and the sunlight peaking in through the blinds was quite annoying, _"I miss my bed…"_ Blake sighed. She pushed herself up from the lumpy couch and made her way to the bathroom, thankfully her old friend was still asleep so she could shower first.

Tukson was always one of the louder spoken, but less violent members of the White Fang when Blake was a part of it. He was a supporter of her father, though he did not have much clout on his own. She was surprised when she had found his shop in Vale the day before, thinking he would never have left his hometown in Vacuo. She hissed as she stepped into the cold shower, before hissing again as the water erratically changed to hot. It reminded her of the Merry and its constant plumbing problems. She didn't mind, if the worst of her problems were a racist teammate and bad plumbing she would manage. Being Blake had it's perks, instead of being actively hated by most of the world she was only scorned by racists. Jinbei had dealt with worse, _Nico Robin_ had dealt with worse.

How long had it been since she had called herself that? Had she ever? Even when she revealed her identity to Jaune she never expressly stated her former name. In truth it was liberating but… somewhat wrong. She was almost using the name of Blake Belladona as a mask, just like Ms. All Sunday. She was still Nico Robin under all of this… Wasn't she? She thought she was, she thought that she and Jaune were still the same under their new personas. But now she didn't know. Jaune, his aura felt different… more at peace. Like his idenities merged into one. Did it come with his re-awakened Haki? No that wouldn't make sense, she had awakened her Haki at a young age and she still felt strange.

After stepping out of the shower Blake looked in the mirror as she dried herself off. The steam obscured the image in the foggy mirror so she wiped it off. As she wiped the hazy image of her catlike reflection began to shift.

Her reflection's cat ears and yellow eyes soon changed to blue and human features with wavy black hair in the mirror. Blake took a startled step back and stumbled into the towel rack, grasping at her towel to make sure it hadn't come undone.

 _"You stole it…"_ Robin's reflection voice said with a sad shake of her head, _"You are not me, Blake Belladona. You are just a scared young girl living in my shadow."_ The reflection chuckled. _"Though it is quite funny that the only true Straw Hat traits you show to anyone besides Sanji's reincarnate-thank god for that, is when you ran away… Like I did before I truly considered myself a part of their crew." She sneered._

"Who are you?" Blake whispered.

 _"I'm you. Or at least, a part of you."_ Robin answered, _"The part that can assure you that you are not Nico Robin. You're just a pussy playing assassin._

"What did you.." Blake snarled, her fists clenched at her sides as she glared at the visage of the Devil Child.

 _"Because you're a cat. What?"_ Robin asked with an innocent (hah!) tilt of her head while Blake visibly shook in rage before punching through the mirror. The glass shattered around Blake's fist, some of the shards cutting into her-wait cutting into her? She looked at one of the larger ones on the ground, the one that contained Nico Robin's mouth. _"You stole my abilities Blake, it's only fair I get yours in return."_ The Devil Child of Ohara chuckled. _"Have fun Blake."_ Her chuckle turned into full blown laughter when Blake bolted out of the bathroom, barely getting out an apology to Tukson after nearly barreling into him. She scrambled to get dressed and gather her things before yelling a hasty goodbye to the other Faunus. She needed air, fresh air, seabreeze-no filtered library air. Blake gripped her hair as she hunched over, who was she anymore? Blake Belladona was only a mask, she was still Nico Robin. Wasn't she?

 _—_

The B or RWBY had found herself at the Garp Street Cafe. She glanced down at the tea cup in her shaky hands before looking up at the man seated across from her with a look of barely hidden annoyance. Sun Wukong was the name of the boy, the same monkey Faunus who her crewm-Weiss was chasing down.

"By the way, I knew you'd look better without the bow." Sun said with a smile, a smile that quickly was wiped away by the icy gaze of the reincarnate.

"What do you want?" Her voice was soft, hardly above a whisper.

"Wha?" Sun asked, "Couldn't hear you." He said while clearing his ear out with a pinky.

"What…" Blake sighed, already drawing the similarities in behavior to her former captain, "Do you want with me?"

"Oh that's easy." Sun said with a grin, "I just wanted to talk, hang out, catch a movie?"

"Not on your life."

"Worth a shot," Sun sighed dejectedly, slouching his shoulders. "Anyway I wasn't really looking for you. But uh, the blonde guy who got farted on yesterday is." He snickered at the memory of the strange fight that took place during his escape. "I ran into him and this girly dude earlier. Told them I didn't see you." He added quickly to placate the dark haired mystery girl who just crossed her arms. She lowered them and Sun let out a sigh of relief he didn't know he was holding in.

"Trust that idiot to go poking around where he doesn't belong." Blake sighed with a fond smile as a lone tear made its way down her face. _"I'm sorry I don't deserve that loyalty, Jaune."_

"So why did you run away from your team anyway? Were you sleeping with one of their boyfriends?" He asked with a foxlike grin, leaning in to smirk at the now blushing cat Faunus.

"What-no!" She sputtered indignantly before letting out a long sigh to try to calm herself. "Look I appreciate buying me tea, but I don't really-"

"Trust me? Let me guess. Because I'm just some random stowaway who's probably part of the White Fang." Sun snapped, standing up and turning towards the door as he spoke. "I thought you seemed different, kitty. Guess I was-" He looked down to see Blake's hand grabbing his wrist, her nails digging in to his aura shield.

"I was part of the White Fang!" She whispered harshly, cutting him off.

"…Wrong. Ok then." Sun said, turning around and sitting down again. "What made you join up with that nest of psychos?"

"They weren't always that way." Blake began, "They once were peaceful. When they were led by my father I mean."

"Wait father… Your dad's Ghira the-" Sun exclaimed, eyes wide with excitement even as Blake slapped a hand over his mouth to stop him from screaming. Sun looked around, confused as Blake had both her arms crossed but then looked down and saw an arm sprouting from his chest that kept it shut.

"Yes now shut up." She said, keeping the hand over his mouth as she spoke. "I was a part of all of the rallies from the moment I was old enough to hold up a sign. I thought we were fighting for peace, for equality." She explained, a smile forming on her face as she spoke of the days of the old White Fang. Her expression quickly soured, however. "That changed when my _partner"_ She spat the word out like it was poison, "- gained support. My family was run out of the Fang, branded as human sympathizers. Except for me the blood traitor." She chuckled dryly, "The ironic part is I called them traitors… The only one there was me. I betrayed my own beliefs." Her face felt wet and she looked up to see the still gagged sun holding her a napkin to wipe her eyes with. "Thank you."

"Nmpph pmhmrh." Sun said with a nod and a thumbs up, though his words were garbled by the makeshift gag-thank you Hana Hana no Mi. Blake uncrossed her arms and the arm faded into petals.

"It sounds like you care about them." Sun said with a small smile, "A traitor wouldn't care, or at least that's what I think. Never been in that situation before. So you ran because your team found out?"

"I was going to tell them…" Her voice was weak, soft, untrusted. _"Just like how_ I _was going to tell the Straw Hats I was the survivor of Ohara?"_ Robin's sarcastic laugh cut her like a knife, causing Blake to look away. Lest she let Sun know of her internal struggle.

"So you just didn't find the right time and it all came outta nowhere, right?" Sun asked, receiving a nod in response. "Sounds stupid." He chuckled at the angry growl from Blake. "This whole situation I mean. Just a big understanding, so just go talk to them and it'll be good."

Blake blinked at the simplicity of his thought process- _just like Luffy_. He was right- _then whey don't you act on it?_ But she couldn't. "It's not that easy." She said, rubbing her wrists anxiously. The door of the restaurant opened and the bell above the door dinged, drawing Blake's attention.

"You'd think Jeff would know everything that goes on in this city." She heard a familiar groan.

"He's a chef, not a spy." Another familiar voice sighed, the apathy in his voice only assured the Faunus of her fears.

"Friends?" Sun whispered to her, discreetly pointing at the duo in question. Blake nodded and Sun grinned, "You want to end this now or on your own terms?" Her silence was the only response. He sighed to himself, his smile dropping, "T'each their own I guess. I'll make a distraction while you…" He turned around only to find an empty seat and a 5 lien card on the table. "Sneak out… Damn she's good." He chuckled to himself, pocketing the card and making his way through the restaurant. Just because Blake wanted to be an upstanding citizen didn't mean he had to be.

—

"So Yang," Ruby said with a grin full of childish glee, "Remember how your arm just healed?" She asked as she dragged-walked with her sister through the halls of Beacon. Weiss had gone off on her own to sulk, and team JNPR wasn't around so Ruby decided to spend time with her sister.

"Uh yeah, kind of hard to forget Ruby." Yang chuckled awkwardly, shaking her free arm, luckily Ruby didn't grab the recently healed one, with a scowl on her face. "Still a little stiff." She grumbled.

"You'll get better Yang! Soon Team RWBY will be back to 100% fighting power!" The young leader shouted with a pump of her fist, only for Yang to sigh dejectedly. "What's wrong… Oh." Ruby winced, remembering that Blake had just disappeared and her statement definitely was not helpful to Yang. "Sorry Yang."

"It's fine Ruby." Yang said with a smile, "So what were you saying about my arm again?"

"Well I figured that I should tell you that Ember Celica is all healed up too." Ruby all but squealed, "I tried to keep as many of the original parts as possible but the barrels were crushed and the plating was a little warped."

"I'm sure you did a… _Yang_ up job." Yang laughed at her sister's groan in response to her pun.

"I wish Jaune's dad beat the puns out of you…" Ruby whined. "Whatever, well here it is." She said, pulling Yang into a room. The blonde was surprised to see a large gray rectangular room, unlike the normal circular lecture halls. The walls were lined with work benches and in the center were bins filled to the brim with different parts.

"What is this?" Yang breathed, taking a few steps in and looking around.

"The Weapon Lab, duh." Ruby snorted, "You think they expect us to do repairs in our rooms?"

"Uh yeah… Wait are you saying you haven't been doing that?" Yang said before snapping at her sister, shaking her by the shoulders. "My jacket smelled for weeks!"

"Not my fault." Ruby said in a dizzy voice as she was released from her sister's grasp and began to stumble around before regaining her bearings. She huffed, "Normally it's more full but with exams coming up I get the whole place to myself." She said with a grin while twirling around, "No annoying Coco trying to play dress up with me-blegh. At least Velvet's nice." She then led Yang over to a desk fully covered in hastily drawn blueprints.

"Just like your desk at Signal." Yang snorted

"Shut up Yang." Ruby pouted before reaching into the cabinet under the desk and pulling out a black box with Yang's insignia painted gold in the center. "You ready to be amazed?" She smirked and pressed down on the clasps opening them.

—

Yang grinned viciously as her gauntlets clicked into place. They felt lighter than before, probably Ruby's handiwork. She noted that the barrels were well now, double barreled. She rolled her eyes at her sister's childishness but had to hand it to her, it was badass. She let off two experimental shots with each gauntlet, her arms bucking from the force. With a hiss and a wince she grasped her injured arm. She then adjusted her stance and focused her aura before she fired again, this time her arms steady the entire time. Yang grinned, taking in the full beauty of the rebuilt Ember Celica. She paused once she reached a trail of deep scratches going up from the side of her knuckle to the end of the gauntlet. A mark of her failure, to protect her friends. Johnathan opened her eyes-not to his belief on fighters, but to the vast power gap between true warriors and huntresses in training like herself. Even Jaune, who had never even attended a combat school, was a better fighter than her. It infuriated her.

"RAAAGH!" A heavy gong rung out instead of the sound of stone being crushed causing Yang to look to her left. Instead of a wall she had actually punched a shield, a shield that hovered on its own.

"I doubt the headmaster would want you to break the training facilities." Pyrrha said calmly as she strode over, decked out in her full armored attire. "More than my team does anyway." She sweatdropped and Yang looked around to see various burns and gashes littering the floor.

 _"This is how hard I have to train_. _"_ The blonde huntress vowed to herself. "Yeah guess I need to get a better _Yang_ on my powers." She said with a grin while raising her eyebrows up and down.

"That was bad." Pyrrha deadpanned and Yang chuckled awkwardly.

"Sorry, defense mechanism. Why are you here though?"

"To train, why else?" Pyrrha tilted her head to the side in honest confusion. "Did you think being the invincible girl means I'm too good to train?" She teased.

"No-no not like that!" Yang sputtered waving her arms around, "I meant without your team. You guys are like… always together."

"If only that were true." Pyrrha sighed wistfully, plopping down to the ground. Yang, faced with two options decided to play true to her role of the big sister and sat down right next to Pyrrha.

"What did lover boy do this time? Did he cheat on you?" Yang asked, "I'll beat him up if he did."

"Wha-no no!" Pyrrha's blush matched her hair and now it was her turn to sputter. "It has to do with him but… Ever since Johnathan came Ren's been acting strange."

"Tall dark and pretty acting strange? Got to be a little more specific than that." Yang chuckled.

"He goes out on his own to train, he doesn't even tell Nora where he's going." That stopped Yang in her tracks. Ren never went anywhere without Nora, or at least she knew where he was. "And Jaune well he's still hiding stuff from us."

"So is Blake." Yang growled. "Those two love their secrets." She said sarcastically, "Always meeting by themselves…" The blonde trailed off, looking away and grumbling incoherently.

"I'm sure it's for good reason. " Pyrrha's voice took the blonde from her thoughts. She thought she had gotten through to the Y of Team RWBY until Yang cast a hateful red eyed glare onto her.

"She abandoned our team Pyrrha!" Yang screamed, standing up. "She left us, without a care for any of us!" The blonde brawler's howls released a fiery aura that expanded with each word until it simmered into nothing. "She left me…" A moment of tense silence passed before a hand was placed on Yang's shoulder.

"You were abandoned in the past weren't you?" Pyrrha questioned, though she knew the answer already. "That's why you and Jaune are distant… And Blake. Oh I'm sorry Yang." She said, wrapping the blonde girl in a tight hug.

"Why… apologize?" Yang wheezed, prying herself free from Pyrrha's grasp. "You did nothing wrong."

"I suppose you're right." Pyrrha said with a smile. The two girls fell into a comfortable silence after that.

"Hey you came here to train right?" Yang asked, "How about we spar? I need to get back into shape anyway. You should be _just_ strong enough." The blonde brawler then adopted a confident smirk.

s

"Oh you think you can take me now?" Pyrrha asked, a smirk of her own as she stood up, calling her shield over and drawing her sword.

"I held up pretty well against Jaune's psycho dad." Yang smirked, "I think I'm liking my odds." She looked down, her hair shadowing her eyes. _"I have to reach that level… by any means necessary!"_ She thought as she charged in against the invincible girl. She would surpass Jaune… only then would she be able to face _her_.

In her mind the image of Pyrrha warped to a shadowy woman wielding a sword, a grin flashed on the shade's face and Yang saw the murderous glint in the woman's red eyes. She quickly shook away those thoughts as Pyrrha rammed her shield into Yang's face, sending her stumbling backwards and clutching her nose.

"Now I'm pissed!" Yang screamed though it was muffled by her hands before she tore her hands away from her mouth, and with a roar her flaming aura returned.

"Good." Pyrrha said with a smirk, _"Jaune… I will learn Haki. And I will stand at your level. I must…"_ Pyrrha thought to herself as she charged in against her opponent-no rival _"LIVE UP TO MY TITLE!"_. Both aimed to surpass the former Straw Hat, but who would reach him first.

 _—_

Down in Vale, Franky sat in Junior's bar, ignoring the odd looks he was getting from the other patrons as he calmly sipped his cola. Across from him sat Roman Torchwick, who was flanked on either side by White Fang guards. The air was tense though Franky remained unfazed.

 _Sllrrrrrrrp_

The former Straw Hat glanced down at his empty cup and shook it around before pouring an ice cube into his hand. He rolled it around in his palm before flicking it lightning fast at one of the grunts, knocking his head back. The other moved for his weapon but Roman stayed his hand.

"He was pissing me off." Franky said with a shrug, "Dude was lookin' at me like I'm some sort of freak."

"Are you saying you're not?"

"No." Franky chuckled, his eyes peering out from behind his sunglasses, "I'm a _SUPER_ Freak!"

"What else would I expect from the boss of Atlas's underworld?" Roman chuckled, "Down to business. I got a big shipment of Dust going out." He leaned in to speak to his Atlesian counterpart.

"Ain't the crime here usually bringing them in?" Franky asked with a raised eyebrow. "Let's say I'm interested. What would you need?"

"Some added security." Roman shrugged, "I trust these animals about as far as I can throw them. And everyone in the underworld knows how strong you are." He stage whispered to a deadpan Franky.

"You know…"

"Ok, as far as Neo can throw them. Whatever!" Roman hastily corrected himself with a harsh whisper. "There's this. Took out most of the mooks I hired last time I was here." Roman looked ovdr his shoulder and waved at one of the bouncers who just scowled deeper and turned away. "Anyway if the rumors are true he was able to beat a legit hunter."

"Let me guess. Blonde, smells like an ashtray and kicks like a _super_ mule." Franky drawled, "Yeah I fought him. Wasn't so tough to me." He bluffed, buffing his nails against his chest.

"I'm guessing the commotion down by Borsalino was you then." Roman chuckled, remembering the grand entrance that Franky pulled off-and the exit too if he was right. "Either way I'm not taking any chances. You in or not?"

"What's the pay looking like?"

"Half a mil upfront, other half when you're done along with a crate of Vacuoan Dust Cola." Roman said with a smirk, "Do we have a deal, metal man?"

Franky took a long swig from his cola, staring intently at the bottle as if it held the answer. He then looked back up at Roman, "Y'know my brain's saying yes but my gut…" He chucks the bottle at the Valean crime lord, "Says hell no!" As the bottle flew, Roman grabbed one of the grunts and pulled the man in the way of the projectile, knocking him out cold. As Roman threw the unconscious body off of himself Franky jumped over the couch he was sitting on and started to run for the door.

"Well? Get him!" Roman shouted at the other White Fang grunt who nodded before getting up. "Dumb animals, the lot of them." He sighs to himself before a woman with half pink and half brown hair walks over with a scroll. "Thank you, Neo dear." He then presses a button on the scroll, "Adam, I have something that requires your assistance." After a few moments Roman nodded and smirked, handing the scroll back to Neo. "Take care of that for me, dear. I have some things to take care of down by the docks." He said as he walked down the stairs to the main dance floor, "And take care of the moron too!" He called out over his shoulder to Neo.

"Hold on there," One of Junior's grunts said, putting up a hand to stop Roman. "Boss says he needs to-AGH!" The man was cut off by his screams of pain as Roman crushed his wrist.

"Sorry, but tell Junior our partnership is… well." Roman then brought up his cane and whacked the man over the head, knocking him out. None of the other thugs made a move, though that was most likely because their eyes were fixated on Neo who had her stiletto blade pointed directly at Junior's neck. "Terminated, ta ta boys." Roman waved a mocking goodbye as he exited the club.

—

"So how'd it go?" Penny asked as she trailed behind her 'big bro' after meeting up with him a few blocks from Junior's bar, where she was told to wait for him while he met with Roman. Stupid age requirements at the bar. He'd been there for _hours_ and it was so boring to wait. Wait wasn't Franky technically younger than her? So unfair, she thought while frowning-not pouting, no matter how much big bro said otherwise. The blue haired android didn't respond and instead grabbed Penny's wrist and began to run. "Big bro what's wrong?"

"Things didn't go super well, lil sis!" Franky chuckled awkwardly, looking over his shoulder though not making eye contact with Penny. Instead the former ship dismantler was looking for people trailing the android duo.

"What do you mean?"

"I might have thrown a bottle at Roman Torchwick's head."

"Why the hell would you do that big bro?!" Penny screamed at the larger android, pounding on his massive forearms with her comparatively small fists. "Wah!" She screamed again as the larger android practically skidded to a stop. "What's wrong?" She asked from behind Franky, unable to see what made him stop before she stepped out from behind him. "Oh." She mouthed, taking note of the situation they were currently in. Specifically the fact that there was practically a wall of black and white blocking their path, and on each of their faces was a mask eerily similar to the Grimm. There were hundreds there, armed to the teeth with swords, bats, guns and whatever weapon they could find. There was even one fox Faunus, going by the tail, at the front who had literal bear hands chained to their forearms for their weapon.

"Ch, never really got to give these guys payback for blowing up the Schnee train I was robbing." Franky chuckled to himself as he slid his sunglasses down over his eyes, the setting sun glinting off the lenses. "Stay behind me lil sis. You're 'bout to see a whole new side of me." The Atlesian crime lord began to unbutton his shirt, leaving his floral print shirt flailing in the wind.

 _klick-hssss_

His shoulders began to rise, and the fabric on top of it fell back as miniature versions of what looked like the unholy child between a cannon and the lasers that Atlesian Knights used.

"What the hell is he?" One of the grunts muttered in shock, raising his weapon and letting off a shot. The bullet hit Franky square in the forehead, crumpling and falling away harmlessly.

"Because I'm a super nice guy I'll let that one slide." Franky said, his head cast down letting his eyes peak menacingly through the shade. "Take a single step, or a single shot. It'll be your last-bitch!" The android roared, all but snarling at the terrorists who dared to try and harm his family. It seemed to work, the grunts had lost some of their will to fight such a monstrous opponent however not all were as easily swayed.

"He's just one guy!" One of the braver, and for his sake hopefully stronger, White Fang members shouted. "Rush him!" And with that rallying cry the mob of Faunus terrorists began their charge on the lone robotic duo.

"You idiots." Franky scoffed as each of the barrels began to glow, "Radical Blaze." He intoned as the cannons fired with a low boom, shattering the glass in the windows of the first floor buildings near Franky. Twin beams of yellow energy shot out, blasting through large swaths of the grunts like a hot knife through butter. Franky grimaced, looking at the smoking barrels before cracking his neck, letting the cannons descend.

"What now?" Penny asked, slightly fearful at fighting such a large force in a contained area. She had not prepared for fighting large groups of enemies, not in street areas where there were also civilians. She looked to Franky, he might not care but she was bound by her programing to protect the civilians first and foremost in combat.

"We fight like our lives depend on it." Franky grinned, "Which they kind of do." He laughed before turning back to face the oncoming force. "Come get me!" He roared, running in and with a shout of "STRONG RIGHT!" His right arm extended out, clocking one grunt clean through the crowd before retracting. As Franky pulled the chain back he jerked his arm to the side, sending the still unattached limb smacking into more grunts before getting pulled out of the group, even knocking some off their feet on the way out, and snapping back into place on Franky's arm. He let it fly again, this time grabbing the base from the beginning and using the chained limb as a flail. "Oh yeah!" He shouted as he reeled his arm back and snapped both of his arms into his signature pose.

Penny herself was doing well, ducking and weaving through grunts before capitalizing on their mistakes. While Franky's A.I was built from the databanks in his old cyborg body, her's was slightly more advanced. Her father called them Brain and Brawn at times, and it was an apt description. "Hragh!" She grunted, cutting through the aura of one of the grunts before kicking him into unconciousness. The punk dressed android then looked to the woman and her son who she saved and smiled at them. "Heya! Me and big bro got things handled over here for now, but if you could call a Huntsman that'd be great." The woman smiled and nodded while the boy looked starstruck. However a second later the woman frowned in confusion.

"But aren't you a huntress?" She asked.

"Nope!" Penny gave a wide, toothy grin as she turned back to face the White Fang grunts who were currently being mowed down by big bro. "I'm just the lil' sis of the baddest ship dismantler in the world." Her grin took a savage look as she twirled her blades before jumping back into combat.

"Cool…" The little boy whispered before his mom grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him away.

and used his right hand to grab his left forearm. "Weapons Left!" He called out as the plating on his knuckles slid down to reveal holes that quickly lit up, firing a barrage of energy blasts at the oncoming group. Though for every White Fang member Franky took down it felt like 2 more took their place. One managed to get close enough to stab at him, creating a harsh screeching sound as the blade clashed against the harder metal under the synthetic flesh.

"…Monster." The Faunus whispered before Franky turned his sunglasses covered gaze to him. He whimpered in terror as the metal man crushed his sword effortlessly.

"Chump." Franky said casually before head butting the man and sending him into the realm of unconsciousness. He then looked back to the mob of White Fang grunts and bared his teeth with a savage grin. "Tank's still full you guys can quit any time you want. Nobody will blame you for giving up against someone so _SUPER!"_ Franky shouted the last bit in his signature pose. This caused their moods to sink further. Tey were used to fighting

"Great, we're getting beaten by a freak." One of the grunts bemoaned.

"Retre-"

"Hold the line." A cold voice cut the grunt off like a blade slicing through a White Fang grunt. As the man's lifeless body fell, the black garbed assailant flicked the blood off his blade. "Coward." He then sheathed his blade just as quickly before stepping forward and facing his men. "Any more who wish to retreat?" He asked, and the soldiers stood still and silent. A smile tugged just so at the corners of his lips. "Good."

"Who the hell're-"

"You'll speak when spoken to, you overclocked scroll." The man snapped at Franky, cutting the android off. "As I was saying. I am disappointed, the Franky Family was the _one_ human group that was not completely terrible. If only for your acceptance of recruits regardless of race." He said in a tone that seemed sad… however almost too sad. "But you just had to go against us." The man's tone then shifted as a psychotic smirk inched its way across the man's face.

"Penny get back." Franky snapped, placing an arm in front of his sister protectively. "I don't want you getting caught up in this."

"No way big bro. I won't let him hurt you." The shorter android said, pushing past Franky with a cold glare in her eyes as she stood at his side, facing down the White Fang leader.

"Hah!" Franky let out a bark of laughter, "Since when did you step up to the big leagues, sis?"

"Since this shit head threatened our family." Penny snarled as she spread her arms out and in response 6 swords flew out of her backpack.

"Pathetic machines." Adam growled, "Charging Bull: Flash!" He roared out, slashing out with his sword and releasing a blade of compressed air laced with his own aura, giving it an evil red afterglow. The blade flew so fast Penny could hardly get her arms up to block, and not a second too soon; as she and her brother looked at the new gouged out tract of land in the wake of the red haired man's attack. Franky instantly burst into action, rushing at the White Fang general and firing a barrage from his Weapons Left, however all the bullets were knocked away by Adam. However this was just a distraction to keep him on the defensive as he then had to block the multi bladed assault from Penny.

"Get him big bro!" Penny called out, gritting her teeth as she moved her fingers at a lightning fast pace to try to keep the upper edge on Adam.

"I can see your strings, puppet." He chuckled grimly, sheathing his sword and stepping back for a moment, before he blurred. After he stopped moving he sheathed his sword, only then did the blades fall.

"Fresh Fire!" Franky then breathed a gout of flames at Adam, as Adam tried to shake off the flames the android leapt up and cupped his hands in front of himself. A light sparked between his palms before another and expanding into a ball of energy. "Radical Beam!" Franky roared as he fired his beam… All of a foot before it fizzled out. Franky looked down at his stomach with a panicked look on his face, "Oh shit, Penny!"

"Die!" The man howled, something black flashed through the flames and they disappeared instantly. He then swung his blade, releasing the flames back onto Franky with greater intensity. The android grit his teeth as he felt flakes of his synthetic skin burning off, but he held strong and tried to grab at the man, only to be kicked away. Franky tumbled across the ground, only being stopped by the now heavily dented streetlight.

 _Keerak!_

And with that the street light gave out and began to fall on top of the blue haired android. Penny ran to help him but gravity took hold too fast for her to be of any use and it landed on him with a resounding crash.

With a fire in her eyes, she turned to face Adam and, flicked her wrist returning two of her swords to her hands attached to new wires.. The remaining four then were reattached as well and hovered behind her, all pointed at the White Fang bastard and ready to skewer him. With an angry roar the android girl charged at the assailant, "I'll kill you!"

Her vision was flooded with routine and subroutine options from combat A.I., that her father and General Ironwood designed, 0N1GUM0 alerted her of the minute twitches of the masked Faunus's fingers towards his blade. She ignored the warnings, acting as her brother would instead.

She would need to time it perfectly, after crossing her arms and then uncrossing them 2 more blades came from her backpack. Adam then chose to strike, and the newly arrived blades blocked his single slash to her back. With his weapon locked in place, Penny mentally commanded the other floating blades to attack Adam. The swordsman blocked each attack, his blade a blur of steel and sparks. Penny grit her teeth, his reaction speed surpassed her processor. It was unprecedented, but the android would push on. She turned, swinging the two blades in her hand with a roar and attacking with all eight blades at once.

"Hm" The White Fang member smirked, "Black Bull Stance." He intoned, and his blade flashed black. First he knocked away eight of her swords away with ease, a lazy grin on his masked face all the while.

 ** _ALERT! ARMAMENT HAKI DETECTED! RETREAT NOW!_** The command blared in her head, but with a thought, _"Cancel_. She couldn't abandon big bro. She didn't know what was so important about armed hockey or whatever, but she couldn't stop now.

"Stampede." He finished, sheathing his sword once before he disappeared from sight. He re appeared about 20 feet behind Penny in the crowd of his followers. He then sheathed his sword once more.

 _k-klick!_

And then it happened. First the glass shattered. Then the streetlights fell and alarms blared. Then so did the White Fang grunts. Each of them had a mess of cuts and gashes strewn throughout their bodies. "You bastard!" Penny screamed as she watched the man's comrades, his people who he fought and died for, dead on the ground by his hand. She moved to charge at him, but something felt off. And that's when she realized it, the alarms were from inside her. The alarms for when she received critical damage. She looked down and saw her arm was cut clean off at the elbow along with a deep gash reaching across her stomach area. Metal cords that glowed with some sort of energy were visible beneath her torn shirt. The android fell to her knees, clutching her stump of an arm. She watched as her executioner approached, the tip of his blade now directly above her.

"Hey, shitty venison." A lazy voice called out from behind. Penny could not crane her neck to see who her savior was, but the man did. A second later flames engulfed the swordsman and he was sent flying away from Penny. In his place now stood the suit wearing blonde who Franky fought the day before. He turned to face Penny with a smirk, "Sit tight Miss. I have to show this bastard why you never put your hands on a lady." The man cracked his neck as he walked towards Adam. The Faunus burst forth from the smoke, sword drawn as he clashed against Sanji's black leg. Another man rushed over to Penny and picked her up, thoguh she could hardly make out his face from the current angle. Or maybe it was the gray face mask he wore.

"Don't worry we're here to help." The man said to her, setting her down by Franky who was still unconscious.

"A Haki user… Who only kicks." The red haired man mused, parrying each of his opponent's kicks. "Hehehahah… Oh how fortune smiles upon me today." The man laughed, taking a swing at the blonde before Jaune placed the sole of his foot against Adam's blade. The metal heated up and Adam had to use Haki on his hand to keep hold of the sword. This was all the distraction Jaune needed to use Shave to get some distance.

"Who are you?" The blonde fighter asked, his eyes narrowed as he looked at the blade in Adam's hands. Its sheath was a beautiful blood red with a golden end cap. The wrappings on the hilt were a similar color to the sheath and was ended with a gold pommel. However the most striking trait of the sword was the clear malevolent aura it held. An aura that Jaune was oh so familiar with. After all, he clashed against it more than anyone before or after him had. "And where did you get that sword." He snarled, his form a raging inferno of hellfire as he glared at his opponent.

"Wouldn't you like to know, blondie?" The man chuckled, "Or should I say Black Leg Sanji." His murderous grin then returned full force as he watched the blood drain from Jaune's face and the flames dissipate.

Off with Penny though, the man watching over her heard that as well and scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. _"Who is Sanji?"_ He asked himself, though he would leave that question for later. Preferably when they weren't about to fight for their lives.

 _—_

Blake looked over the Vale docks from the rooftop perch she sat on. She got a tip from Tukson abput White Fang movement at the docks tonight, she was going to end their operation. To her chagrin, Sun had managed to follow along with her. Though truth be told, back up would not be unwelcome in the current situation.

"So what's the play here girl?" Sun asked with a playful grin before taking a bite out of an apple.

"Did you even pay for that?" Blake asked with a raised eyebrow before turning back to watching the docks.

"No, of course not." Sun said with a grin, which only widened when the dark haired girl hung her head and groaned.

"It's Faunus like you who give the rest of us a bad name." Blake sighed.

"Says little miss former terrorist." Sun joked before freezing at Blake's icy glare. "Too soon?" He asked.

"Too soon." The dark haired girl growled, turning away again. Maybe she should go at it alone…

"Hey is that…" Sun whispered to her, pointing at the docks where they could see an orange haired man standing in the middle of a bunch of White Fang grunts.

"Roman Torchwick." Blake spat, "But it doesn't make sense. The White Fang hates humans, especially ones like him. I'm going to get a closer look, better intel." She said, standing up. "Stay here in case I need back up."

"You're the boss super spy." Sun saluted lazily as he went back to eating his apple. The cat Faunus then jumped off the rooftop and into the darkness-no wait he could see her flying with wings of some sort. He'd have to ask later. For now though, there was a free apple with his name on it. "Heh, super spy." He chuckled to himself, taking a large bite of the apple in his hand.

 **Alright so that's where I'm going to end off the chapter today. So bit of recap I wanted Blake to go through similar difficulties to Jaune. However her problem is reverse. Robin had gotten over running away and actually trusted people while Blake lied to herself and thought she was acting like Robin (which she was… technically). However the Robin half feels like she abandoned what she was and stole her abilities she worked for. Anyway so no aura Blake for right now. For a while it was just no semblance (which is why I only had her use the fruit) but she now has no aura shield either. Coupled with that she's beginning to have trouble telling the difference between herself and Robin as the former self fights for dominance.**

 **Yang and Pyrrha's talk was because they both want to catch up to Jaune, albeit for different reasons. Yang has a grudge with him, Pyrrha doesn't want to be a burden. Not to say she is, but imagine being crowned as the strongest in your generation and being powerless to help your team leader in the hardest fight you've faced? I'd doubt myself if I were in her shoes. But her solution is get stronger so she won't be in that position again. Anyway…**

 **The Adam fight is one I've been wanting to do for a while and I had to redo it a bit. I loved Adam's character up until the end of Vol.3 when he became obsessed with Blake. It made no sense for his character at all. Anyway, I want to make sure you guys understand. ADAM IS NOT ZORO. He has Kitetsu III, but this is also long since Zoro's death. That's like saying Zoro can't use Shusui because it was Ryuuma's. He knows who Sanji is because of reasons that will be revealed soon, or already revealed if you think back to Robin/Blake and him being partners. In my first version Adam fought against Franky, Penny, Jaune and Ren from the beginning. But then I realized that was all too convenient so I changed it to Jaune arriving later so his fight can start next chapter.**

 **Oh and if you can guess what's in the crate Roman got or the one he gave Cinder you can tell it's gonna be crazy. (They are both One Piece related).**

 **No Omake this time, but I promise back to back in the next two chapters. Tell me if you guys want me to keep doing them after the what if Straw Hats.**

 **Alright peace guys and girls, leave a review follow and fave. next chapter will be up hopefully soon. Thanks again for your continued support.  
**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey everyone. It's been a damn long minute since I last updated huh? Well I'm back and ready to bring more updates in the coming weeks. I was out backpacking in Costa Rica for the past few months, learned all of jack shit in Spanish, I did learn how to use a machete however. Stayed with some cool people, cool people without wifi. That and I left my computer at home for this trip. I needed some time away from everything. Anyway I know a lot has happened in RWBY but I will not be changing my story to accommodate for canon, especially since there is an altered past anyway. Certain parts will be added to make things fit, but otherwise my plan stays the same.**

 **Matt: Not in the slightest. Since this is the first time it's come up I'll explain. A RWBY character using a One Piece weapon or Devil Fruit does not mean they are a character's reincarnation. Weapons are not assigned to a single user, Zoro won Shusui after all. Neither are Devil Fruits as showcased by Blackbeard and Sabo. I haven't used any until this point, but there will be others.**

 **merendinoemiliano: Thanks for another review first of all. I already explained some of it in a PM response but you asked good questions. Other characters will be catching up soon, however it relies on Blake or outside influence. Sanji/Jaune would not be a good teacher as Jaune explained to Pyrrha. We know he was trained by Ivankov, so chances are the methods were a little less sane than the main Revolutionary army forces, Mihawk or Rayleigh (it's perfectly sane for Luffy and his explanations made sense). Ruby however I don't have a plan for her power up yet since now I have stuff to work with about silver eyes. It will involve some editing of the world, which already has been edited a lot to fit the merger of One Piece and RWBY, but I think I can manage her original powers with… Well you'll see when you see.**

 **Anyway thank you everyone for the continued support, there will be more updates in the coming weeks and months. Don't you worry.**

Yang let out a grunt of exertion as she blocked a round from Pyrrha rifle with her left gauntlet. The blonde brawler then charged in, leaping at Pyrrha with one arm facing behind her and the other cocked back ready to deliver a punch. With a bang, Yang let out a shot from her back facing gauntlet to propel her faster towards Pyrrha though her punch was just shy of hitting the mark. "Damn, almost got you that time." The blonde cursed as she pulled her hand from the rubble.

"Almost doesn't count. Or at least that's what Master Xilphas taught." Pyrrha said in her normal sweet tone. Yang could at least take pride in making the invincible girl work up a sweat. But that wasn't enough for her. Not anymore. She had to push even further, go even beyond Pyrrha to the levels of Johnathan and his son. Only then would she be able to face _her_.

An image of a shadowy woman appeared in Yang's mind _"Mom…"_ She thought with a sour expression. Though her thoughts quickly returned to the fight at hand, thankfully for her as she had to dodge a shield strike from the amazonian huntress. "Not even giving me a second to breathe, huh?" Yang asked, smirking at her opponent as she ducked under the attack.

"That wouldn't be much fun now would it?" Pyrrha asked, still smiling as she shifted her rifle into xiphos form to go in for a slash. It was deflected but Yang still couldn't seem to land a hit on Pyrrha. No matter how many punches she threw the champion was always one step ahead of her. And with that insufferable smile to boot.

"Just!" Yang shouted as she threw a punch which sailed past Pyrrha's head. "Stay!" She enunciated with another punch, which had the same effect on Pyrrha being none. "Still!" Yang screamed, her eyes flashing red as she fired a double slug into Pyrrha's chest. The greek armored huntress doubled over as she was sent skidding back a few feet. "Pyrrha! I'm so-" Yang's hurried apology was cut off by a flying shield braining her.

"Your guard was down." Pyrrha said, her tone cool as she exhaled deeply. "Good, I suppose I can fight seriously." She said, her smile returning. Though this time it had a vicious edge to it. One of a warrior chomping at the bit, waiting to cut loose. Pyrrha shot forward, at a speed much faster than Yang but to her dismay not even matching Ren, and delivered a shield bash followed by a pommel strike to Yang's body and head.

The busty brawler rubbed at her head, groaning. "Ok, I'm up now." Yang grunted, her gauntlets clicking down once more. "Let's roll!" She shouted, firing behind herself once more to give her some much needed extra speed. Pyrrha readied herself, raising her shield. Yang reared her arm back and delivered an uppercut towards the center of Pyrrha's chest. Or, she would have had she not swung at the redhead's right side, completely missing her as Pyrrha sidestepped the attack. After that, Yang lowered her arms. "Pyrrha," She called out, catching the other girl's attention. "What is your semblance?"

The redhead huntress lowered her weapons and sighed. "I'd rather not.."

"Pyrrha."

"…Polarity." Pyrrha answered, her voice almost a whisper.

"What?"

"I have minor control over magnetism." She said, levitating her sword.

"Minor nothing, that looks like major control." Yang scoffed, "So that's how you've always won. You know, it always seemed weird to me that nobody could ever hit you during training. Even Jaune," She scowled at the mention of her male blonde counterpart, "Has taken a few hits in class."

"I'm sorry,"

"Sorry?" Yang asked, eyebrow cocked. "This is awesome! I get to train against someone who can re-direct my attacks." Yang adopted a slightly calmer expression. _"This is just what I need to step things up."_ She thought to herself. She then lowered her head, her hair shadowing her eyes from Pyrrha's view.

"So you're not mad?" Pyrrha asked.

"Mad that you didn't tell me sooner." The blonde said as she raised her head and grinned once more, charging in again. This time forgoing on her gauntlets and going in bare handed. If she could overpower the magnetism with brute force she could win. And brute force was something she had in spades. Pyrrha was sure to find that out soon enough.

—

"I won't ask a third time, shitty venison." Jaune snarled as flames burst forth from his feet. The cigarette in his mouth was now just ash in the wind. "Where did you get the sword?" He asked. The flames from his feet rising upward and giving him the visage of a demon.

"It's none of your business." Adam spoke as he drew his sword, admiring it. He grinned at his reflection in the beautiful steel, "However I believe you two are familiar." He twisted his grip so the edge was facing Jaune. "Yes Kitetsu remembers you well." Adam pointed the blade at Jaune and took a step, disappearing in the telltale blur of Shave towards the reincarnated chef of the Straw Hats. He swung his sword in a wide arc, hoping to bifurcate the chef had he not jumped cleanly over the attack before retaliating with a heel drop on Adam. The White Fang member got his guard up just as quickly and the two clashed in a shower of sparks from their Armament. Adam smirked at his weaponless opponent, who only scowled in return. He then drew his blade back again and attempted a horizontal slash which Jaune blocked with the flat of his left foot, driving it downward.

"It is my business, shithead." Jaune grit his teeth as he leapt off the blade and began to spin midair, flames burst to life along his leg as he reared it back. "Collier…" And the flaming limb lashed out like a blazing python, "STRIKE!" Adam ducked under the blazing leg and drew his sword, the flames singeing the sleeve of his jacket but he paid it no mind. He stretched his arm out, lashing out with a spinning slash; hoping to cut Jaune in the tornado of steel. The blonde, however used Sky Walk to push himself away before bouncing right back in with a flying obsidian kick. Adam blocked with the flat of Kitetsu, grunting as he was pushed back from the force before disengaging. Jaune flew a bit past him before spinning on landing to face the red haired Faunus.

"Your guard's open!" The bull Faunus cackled as he swung upward, cutting through Jaune's suit jacket. Adam frowned however as the attack did not break skin, instead scraping harmlessly off of his slightly gleaming skin. Adam took a second too long to retract his blade as Jaune jumped and then used the tip of the blade as a springboard. He then began to flip midair and raised his flaming leg once more.

"Get bent you half rate swordsman! Concassé!" Jaune shouted as he brought his foot down, he felt Adam's sword clash against his foot. How many times had he been in a situation like this? Too many to count. Had he learned to deal with it? Of course. One had to learn to combat a swordsman of considerable power when they lived with Roronoa Zoro and clashed with him regularly. With a savage grin Jaune pressed harder, though the White Fang officer remained calm.

"Your flames… I wonder… how strong they truly are." The red haired man said through grit teeth as he pushed against Jaune's blazing attack. Before grinning as his sword glowed a malevolent red, sucking all of the flames out of Jaune's kick and revealing the obsidian limb beneath the flames.

"What… the… hell…" Jaune gasped as the flames were literally sucked out of his leg, which still was hazy from the heat coming off of it. With a hiss his leg returned to normal temperature, his Diable Jambe no longer active.

"Hell's Charge!" Adam thrust the katana forward like a spear, specifically one made out of flames as the sword released a large gout of fire with the motion of his stab. The light of the flames illuminated the sadistic glee in Adam's face. The chef had hardly a second to get his bearings before being put on the defensive once again.

Jaune narrowly sidestepped the attack and relit his leg on the flames of Adam's sword. He then kicked off the ground with his other leg, leaving a spiderweb crack in the ground as he Shaved over the swordsman; flipping through the air before lashing out with a back kick with his shining obsidian leg. He grinned as Adam let out a grunt of pain and landed at Adam's side with his flaming leg reared back. "Flambage Shot!"

This time the flaming limb did connect with the White Fang extremist's torso and sent him flying, smoke trailing from his form as he crashed through the wall of a lingerie store. Jaune then readjusted his tie before allowing the flames around his leg to disappear. He began to walk towards the orange haired girl who had been fighting before him before he felt something off. His eyes widened and all of his senses screamed at him to get out of dodge. Jaune turned around to see something moving through the rubble. The blonde groaned, this was starting to get annoying, like that one CP9 bastard.

"Guess you want seconds." Jaune cracked his neck before setting his gaze on the shop, subtly activating a layer of Armament Haki on top of his Aura.

"You…" A large chunk of stone was throne away as Adam walked back out onto the street. The left side of his uniform was burnt to a crisp. He had light burns on that side as well, most likely getting up his Haki just in time to prevent worse damage. However unbeknownst to him was the fact that a lacy black bra was caught on his horns. "You…"

"Pfft." The blonde chef let out a small chuckle, interrupting the Faunus.

"What?" Adam growled, "What could be so funny?"

"N-nothing, nothing." Jaune chuckled, "I just thought of this old joke." He said while pulling another cigarette out putting it in his mouth. He then pulled out his lighter, flicking the flint and igniting the lighter fluid that was released. As light from his cigarette illuminated his face he stopped laughing, but his grin remained. "The last guy who had that sword." Adam's grip tightened around the hilt of the sword, before letting out a sigh to calm himself.

"Indeed. I am nothing like Roronoa Zoro." Adam chuckled too, tilting his head back, the bra stayed on. "I am superior… For I have a mission, and I will use Kitetsu to accomplish it. I will make the Faunus the dominant race! And Kitetsu will bathe in the blood of any scum who dare to get in my way." Adam pointed Kitetsu at Jaune, his teeth clenched as his scowled underneath the mask. "And _you_ are just another stepping stone."

"Y'know, Moss head wasn't so preachy. So that's a point to him." Jaune said, finally getting his laughter under control. "And he wore a black bandana, not a black bra." And with that he lost control again.

"What?" Adam growled, reaching for his the top of his head and snatching the bra out. He looked at it for a moment before throwing it off to the side. He snarled at Jaune before taking a deep breath to calm himself. "You truly are a pest, human. I was wrong to not use all of my power from the start." Adam said with a wide stretching smile that revealed his sharp canines. "Did you know…" He trailed off, placing a hand on the hilt of his katana before speaking again, his grin widening giving him a frightening visage. "that the Faunus descended from the Minks?" He asked, before red electricity sparked around his feet, his forearms and his sword.

"Oh fu-"

 _K-krack!_

Jaune fell to his knees, clutching a new gash in his side. The suit material around the cut was also singed and blackened. Adam walked past, sheathing Kitetsu. His speed was unreal now, the power of Electro coupled with his already impressive physical capabilities was insane. Jaune could hardly keep up. The red haired swordsman's footsteps drew closer.

"Any last words?"

 _Shing!_

 _ratatatatataatat!  
_

Adam's head snapped to the left before his sword blurred, blocking the hail of green bullets. Behind him Ren blurred into existence, arms crossed with Stormflower's blades ready to cut into Adam. Adam blocked with the obsidian armored sheath of Kitetsu. Sparks flew from the weapons as they clashed before Ren broke away to fire at the powerful swordsman once more. The huntsman in training circled his opponent firing a constant hail of green bullets to keep the Faunus on the defensive. Adam was able to block the hail with ease with his sword, appearing to have no external struggle keeping up.

 _click click_

And with the ammo clips empty, the red haired swordsman made his move, blurring towards Ren who only barely was able to put up the knife like blades of Stormflower in response. Jaune could only watch as his teammate engaged the powerful swordsman in an duel of blades. Ren had a disadvantage at this range, however his tactical usage of Shave and Paper Arts, which he would have to ask the quiet boy about later, allowed him to close in on Adam. On the other hand, Adam's use of the lightning power allowed him to react with ease and deal punishing blows. Their exchange only lasted so long as Adam landed an electrically charged punch into Ren's chest, knocking him onto his back. Jaune let out a sigh of relief when he saw Ren's chest rise, indicating he was still alive.

"Now Black Leg, watch as I kill this pathetic human." Adam gloated with a twisted grin, raising his sword above Ren. His malicious lightning from electro sparking off the blade.

"NO!" Jaune shouted, reaching out an arm in a futile effort to save his friend. For the first time since being reborn he felt legitimate fear for another's life.

"I got some." Adam turned around and was shocked to see Franky standing up. His shirt was half destroyed, his gold chain was missing, however his speedo remained completely undamaged. His skin was torn up in various places, revealing the cybernetic skeleton beneath. and he had a large bruise on the size of his arms were positioned in front of his chest as he charged a ball of energy in his hands. Without warning a beam of pure destruction tore through the street as it raced towards Adam. Instincts kicked in and he tried to absorb the blast with his semblance. It worked at first, until the energy overwhelmed him as he was caught in the blast. "Radical. Beam." The former cyborg enunciated clearly before blowing the smoke off his palms.

"What took you so long, shithead?" Jaune asked with a weak grin as he gripped his side.

"That's what I should be asking you, bastard. Me and my sis got our asses _Super!_ kicked, and then you show up out of nowhere?" Franky glared at the captain of Team JNPR. "What's your game Straw Hat's… Eh what did they call you?"

"Jaune what's he talking about?" Ren asked his captain. "Does he know you from somewhere?"

"I…" Jaune sighed, "Look… I'll tell you… And the rest of the team later." He ground out, "Adam's not down. I can still hear him." He turned to Franky, "And I'm… _Was_ the chef, specifically the best damn chef on the Grand Line."

"What do you mean hear him?" Franky paused before asking. "You a Faunus or somethin'?"

"Haki… Look you don't remember getting our collective asses stomped like I do so you wouldn't know. Or the two years of hell following it" Jaune said, grumbling the latter half when he saw Franky tilt his head in confusion. The android then adopted a serious expression, crossing his arms.

"You're really sticking by that story of me joining you guys huh?" Franky asked, his tone dead serious.

"You built our second ship out of wood made from Jewel Tree Adam." Jaune chuckled, "Though… our missing beautiful friend had to persuade you to come aboard."

"… Let's say I believe you." Franky said.

"So-"

 ** _"BLACK LEG!"_** A blast of red electricity tore forth from Adam as he screamed out. His skin on his chest was entirely blackened, whether it was from his Haki or the burns they could not tell. He was practically frothing at the mouth and Jaune would assume his eyes were bloodshot under the mask as well but it was remarkably durable and still in place. His jacket was practically torn apart. All that remained was the right half of the coat, and the sleeve was ruined as well. All in all he looked like he had been through hell. And was going to put them through the same pain.

"Fight now, reunion later?" Jaune asked his amnesiac rebuilt comrade who grinned, popping a Cola he retrieved from somewhere into his gut.

"Let's bust some skulls oh yeah!" Franky laughed, his grin widening as the skin on his left arm folded away to reveal the hulking cannon beneath. Branded onto the metal were the letters TGISS.

Though he stood up and drew his blade. Red electricity sparked from the blade as he tensed his legs, electricity cracking at his feet and destroying the ground. He stretched his sword arm out before uttering a single phrase.

 ** _"Aresu no Ikari."_**

"Get back!"

"SHIIIIIIIIIT!"

—

Ruby sighed as she watched Weiss hunched over her scroll, reading article after article with possessed fervor. She had been like this all day, hardly eating or doing much else. Ruby had tried to bring her food but the heiress didn't even regard her with a snarky remark. It was weird, and the young leader of Team RWBY didn't like it. She pushed open the door to their room, the low creak made her wince however Weiss didn't even look up from her book.

"Weiss?"

"What Ruby?" The white haired heiress sighed.

"Are you ok? You hardly ate since you woke up today." Her partner asked.

"Do you know why I hate the White Fang?" The Schnee heiress asked in return, before speaking again without waiting for a response. "It's because over the years I had to watch family, friends, board members…" A tear streaked down the pale girl's face, "Get executed, one by one. By the White Fang. And for what?"

"I-I don't?"

"I just want to find Blake." Weiss said. "I want to ask her why." She said with a choked sob. "Why did so many of my family have to die? Our friends? We live with a target on our backs." The Schnee heiress wiped her eyes, "I want to know why they would go from peaceful protests to murder and destruction."

"Hey Weiss for all you know Blake left before they got all kill-y." Ruby said to her teammate, placing a hand on the white haired girl's shoulder. It was all she could do. She was way out of her depth here. She was only 15 after all, and her dad tried to keep her and Yang quite sheltered in their youth.

"But what if she didn't?" Weiss turned to Ruby, her eyes puffy and make up ruined by the tears. "What if this whole," She starting waving her arms around, "Team thing was an act? What if she was a spy sent here to take down Beacon? What then, Ruby?"

"We'll know when we find her." She said to her teammate with a strong smile on her face. Though she hoped that Weiss was wrong, and in her heart Ruby knew Weiss did too.

"The innocent don't run." Weiss said, pushing herself out of Ruby's grasp.

"Well, I'm going into town with Nora to look. Yang said she and Pyrrha would catch up after they eat." Ruby shifted her feet as she tried to ignore her partner's harsh attitude. "Do you want to-"

"I'm fine Ruby." Weiss said, cutting her off. The heiress then walked out of the room, trying to escape the feelings bubbling in her chest. She didn't know whether to feel justified in her belief or guilty for brushing her teammate off like that the day before. As she walked through the halls she saw Pyrrha and Yang walking back to the rooms, sweaty but still in their clothes. It was starting to get dark by now, how long had they been fighting? _'monsters'_ She thought with a smile. Yes they were monsters, but _her_ monsters. Her friends.

"Hey Weiss." Yang said with a wave. "Good to see you finally out of the room." The blonde said with a grin.

"Yes well, I figured some fresh air would do me some good."

"Yeah me too. Or well, a good fight in my case." Yang said with an awkward chuckle, rubbing the back of her neck as she glanced at Pyrrha. "Sorry for… y'know denting your shield."

"It was bound to happen some time." Pyrrha said with a smile, waving off the blonde brawler's concerns.

"I would assume you girls haven't heard anything about Blake?" Weiss asked.

"Jaune and Ren went into Vale earlier to look for her, but I haven't heard back from them." Pyrrha said.

"I haven't heard anything either." Yang said, eyebrow raised, "I'm a little surprised Weiss. Didn't think you cared."

"Hmph," The heiress scoffed, "You know what they say about assumptions, Yang. Besides she _is_ a member of my team."

"Ruby's team."

"Same difference." Weiss said with a scowl.

 _BWAAA_

The trio of huntresses looked around, shocked by the obnoxious noise. Immediately Pyrrha checked her scroll, which was vibrating and the screen was flashing red. The armored huntress went pale after checking the screen.

"What's up?" Yang asked

"Jaune and Ren's aura just went into the red." Pyrrha said, her tone panicked. "We have to go, now." The redhead said before taking off. Yang shrugged before running after her.

"Should we call Nora and Ruby?" The blonde asked, "Or… Wait for Weiss?"

"No time. If whoever they're fighting managed to hurt Jaune…" Pyrrha grimaced. The last opponent they had that could hurt her leader was insanely strong. What hope did they have of fighting someone of the same caliber? No, she shook those thoughts from her head. She will help them, regardless of the risk. That's what it means to be a part of a team.

Weiss, who had been left behind huffed in annoyance. "Guess I'll go and get Ruby… And my dust." She groaned. This was not how she imagined her day to be going.

—

Adam's attack had left the street they were fighting in utterly destroyed. Large gouges were carved out in the street and the smell of ozone permeated the area. A light post was even melted around the cut in the metal. But what of the J and R of JNPR? Ren had escaped much of the damage, though not without cost. Jaune had taken the brunt of it for him, standing in front of his teammate as an immovable wall. The blonde on the other hand looked like he went through a meat grinder. His suit was torn and cut in various places and his armament Haki was receding to reveal the numerous cuts and gashes littering his chest and arms. With shaky arms he reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette, lighting it. "That… all you got?" The chef said through a cloud of smoke. "Urk-" He grunted in pain, falling to a knee.

"Jaune…" Ren groaned before his eyes widened, "Jaune!" The normally quiet huntsman pushed himself upright.

"I'm… I'm fine." Jaune grunted. "Listen, get out of here. Me and the pervert can take this shithead." He tried to push himself to his feet but couldn't.

"Screw… You." Franky groaned, he too had been hit by the powerful attack. His chest had a large gash in it, revealing the wiring and metal skeleton beneath. Though with him being an android he was able to stand through the pain.

"Heh." Adam chuckled from behind them. "I'll commend you filthy humans. It's been a while since I've had to exert this much effort." He flicked his blade to the side as he spoke with a mad grin.

"Ren, go!" Jaune shouted.

"Gh… Fine." Ren sighed, "If… You can stand."

"Fuck you, just go shitty… Damn I don't have one for you yet." Jaune snapped.

"Yeah pretty boy!" Franky said with a grin, "This is for the big boys." He said, gripping his left arm and leveling it at Adam. "Weapons Left!" He shouted.

 _ratatatatatatat!_

The hail of bullets flying towards Adam were easily deflected by the White Fang swordsman.

"Really metal man, do you not have any other tricks?" Adam asked, shaking his head in mock pity.

"Funny you should mention that." Franky said with a grin full of false bravado. He then slammed a dust crystal into a socket on his arm. " _Super_ Cool Weapons Left!" A stream of blinding white bullets fired at Adam. The first one was dodged and the second deflected, though this time the barrage was different. As each bullet bounced off the blade, minute amounts of frost began to build until Adam's sword was frozen in a block of ice.

"Gh- fine!" Adam snarled, tossing his blade to the side and jumping at Franky, his arms drawn back and crackling with electricity. As he descended he pushed his arms forward. Franky had no way to dodge and was forced to block the attack with his forearms.

 _Boom!_

The ground cracked and crumpled under the force of Adam's attack. Franky grit his teeth as he tried to not get pushed back, though it was to no avail.

"Damn!" Franky grunted in pain as he was flung back, his metal body skidding across the ground to a halt at Jaune's feet.

"No…" Jaune whispered. His fists clenched around the crushed cigarette in his hands. "No god dammit!

—

On an island sitting in the middle of a dead sea was a castle. The castle was destroyed and desolate, but sunlight shone on the decrepit castle. And sitting in the destroyed throne room was a young blonde man suited in armor. The blonde seemed to be dozing until the sound of footsteps jarred him from his rest.

"So it's time huh?" A suit wearing blonde, who was slightly older looking asked his younger counterpart.

"It's been a ride." The armored blonde chuckled, "Now let's make this bastard pay."

"Hell yeah."

And fire roared around them, burning through the ruined banners with the number 66 emblazoned on them.

—

"And what do you think you can do?" Adam asked, a slightly too-wide grin on his face. "Face it Black Leg, you lost."

"Like… Hell!" Jaune roared, flames busting to life around him in a pillar. The heat obscured him from Adam's view, even making the powerful Faunus step back to avoid being burned. Once the flames burned down it was clear Jaune had gone through some sort of change. A constant aura of flames surrounded his body, concentrating around his feet. As the aura reached his head it made some of his hair stand up in a way that resembled devil horns. And his eyes, his normally black eyes were practically balls of orange fire.

"Well… Look who's finally using his semblance." Adam said with a smirk. "I was beginning to feel insulted."

"I'LL END YOU!" Was all Adam heard before he felt heat. He looked down in shock to see Jaune's blazing leg, not even empowered by Armament Haki, sinking into his gut. It was a moment before physics took hold and the redhead swordsman was sent flying, smoke trailing his form. "Poitrine." The blonde enunciated, his tone one of a cold fury, a stark contrast to his blazing form.

"Alright maybe I-" Adam began to speak as he pushed himself out of the rubble. Though it was too late, Jaune was already ducked low in front of him and quickly flipped into a handstand and delivered a spinning kick to his ribs at lightning fast speeds. Adam was sent tumbling along the ground again.

"Get up shitstain. I have to pay you back for the pain you caused the lady… And these two chumps." Jaune said in a low growl.

"Well isn't that precious." Adam said through a cough, catching his breath before continuing. "You cocky human…"

"Shitty venison." Jaune acknowledged with equal animosity. He then blurred forward again, this time clashing against Adam's lightning encased punch. The two then descended into a flurry of punches and kicks, elements of fire and electricity flying as each combatant tried desperately to gain an edge. The two clashed once more, blazing shin colliding against a lightning coated elbow. Jaune grunted in exertion before his expression turned murderous.

 _He had watched Kuma send them away one by one, helpless to do anything to stop him. First the shitty swordsman, who he now wished he wasn't always fighting with… Ok maybe not that far, then Brook, then Usopp. It was too much. With a roar of fury the chef of the Straw Hat pirates stood up and took off running towards the monstrous opponent from the Shichibukai._

"Hell Memories!" Jaune roared, his flames burning even hotter as he kicked Adam upward. He then bolted to the sky with his Sky Walk, leaving a trail of flames behind him as he arced in the air above Adam, spinning in the air so fast he looked like a top; before lashing out with a kick to Adam's chest and then one to his stomach. This sped up until his leg was nothing but a blur, "Venaison…" He rumbled as his leg extended high above him. "SHOOT!" He bellowed, bringing the foot down in an axe kick and sending the White Fang swordsman flying to the ground. Jaune landed shortly after him, his blazing aura still remaining but calmed down to embers burning around him.

"It's not…" No way, Jaune thought as his gaze carried over to the area where Adam landed. "It's not OVER!" With a mighty roar and a burst of red electricity the rubble cleared. Standing, though barely, and covered in bruises and burns was Adam Taurus. His chest was entirely blackened by the hardening power of Armament Haki, which was slowly receding. The Faunus appeared to be on his last legs. "It's not over Black Leg…" He wheezed. His mask was cracked over his left eye as well, revealing through the crack a pool of hate. Adam. blurred past him and grabbed his sword, now thawed from the ice thanks to Jaune's Semblance. "It's not over until you die!" The swordsman screamed as he ran at Jaune, sword out to the side as he prepared to cut into the reincarnated pirate.

"Tch," Jaune grunted, running at Adam as well. But this time something was different, he was slower. They both were. Jaune reared his leg back, the flames rising around the now armored limb. In a flash the two warrior's struck out against each other. And in a flash, the flames were gone. It was merely his leg against the steel of Kitetsu III, "Wha-?"

"Did you forget?" Adam asked through his cackling. "My semblance is absorption." And with that Kitetsu was alight with flames, flames which burned Jaune as Adam followed through with his swing, cutting the Huntsman in training's leg. "Poor little human. Thinking he is above everyone because of his Haki. And even more arrogant to think your freshly acquired Semblance will allow you to face me." He said, walking over to Jaune who was now clutching his wounded limb. "Can you feel it? The drain on your stamina."

This stopped Jaune cold in his tracks. Adam was right. His body felt so heavy right now it was taking every ounce of his energy to move, let alone fight. How much energy did his Semblance use? Was it because it was new? Shit this was just like-

 _"Yeah. that giraffe freak was pretty tough. I want to fight him again once he actually learns how to use his Devil Fruit."_

Dammit, he went crazy with a new power and it was coming to bite him in the ass. "I…" Jaune paused in his speech to hiss in pain as he pushed himself to his feet. "Won't lose to you!" And with that declaration his aura of flames re-ignited around him as he dashed towards the swordsman. Every kick made his aching leg muscles scream out in pain, blocking Adam's sword did doubly so. But he pushed on, he had to. If he fell here Penny, Franky, Ren… They'd die. Not if Jaune has anything to say about it.

"Just die already!" Adam shouted, bringing his blade down on Jaune's shoulder, cutting into it. Though this did not deter the Huntsman as he grabbed Kitetsu and unleashed a flurry of flaming kicks into Adam's chest. This sent the White Fang member skidding backwards before near instantly returning to combat.

The two fought like beasts. No longer using technique or grace but for going for whatever blow they could manage to score on the other combatant. It was now a battle for survival. Demon against beast, and neither was managing to come out on top just yet. Adam hadn't even tried to use Jaune's semblance against him, instead opting for lightning fast slashes with Kitetsu's, you guessed it lightning coated blade, which Jaune only was barely able to block.

Jaune ducked low and sidestepped Adam to get some breathing room. He let himself take a few deep, haggard breaths before putting his guard up as Adam closed in once more. He stayed low, ducking Adam's horizontal slash and following up with a kick that, at first glance would look to have missed the mark. Until one realized where it connected, the location being Adam's wrist on the hand that held Kitetsu. The White Fang swordsman was unprepared and didn't have his Haki up on his wrist and the cursed blade was deftly knocked from Adam's hand. It spun in the air at a rapid pace before clattering to the ground a few feet away from where the two were fighting.

"Back to this, huh?" Adam asked with a small smirk on his face. "I must commend you human, for pushing me this far I'll give you a most honorable death. But a death all the same!" He shouted, charging at Jaune, without his aura of electricity.

"It's you who's dying, bastard bull." Jaune grunted, raising his flaming leg only for the flames to quickly peter out, leaving his black leg hissing with smoke. Jaune then ran at Adam, uncaring of his own lack of firepower.

The two began duking it out and it was clear that they were practically even. Adam's physiology allowed him to take much more punishment than the average human while Jaune had the pain tolerance of a New World class pirate. Thus leaving the two in a stalemate until the other fell. Both were too tired for their more powerful abilities, even Haki appeared to escape the two warriors as they duked it out. Neither one dodging, only focusing more power into the next hit to knock their opponent down.

"Jaune!" What? Pyrrha? Jaune thought, and it was his last conscious thought before he found a fist buried in his gut.

 _B-bam!_

Pyrrha watched in horror as Jaune doubled over Adam's fist. The red haired swordsman was breathing heavily and covered in burns but he still stood while Jaune Arc fell. Adam then delivered a final uppercut to Jaune, sending him flying a foot in the air before coming back down on the ground, unconscious. With almost a dead stare she watched as the redhead hobbled over to his sword and grabbed it.

"I won't let you kill him." Pyrrha said, stepping in front of Jaune.

"Girl… You gotta get outta here." Franky groaned, finally having pushed himself into a sitting position. "He ain't normal."

"I don't care." Pyrrha said, her tone resolute. "Jaune is my team leader. I won't let him die."

"How touching." Adam chuckled, "Do not fret human." He said, sheathing Kitetsu, "Jaune's life is spared… Today. I promised him a death befitting his skill. Next time, I will return. And I will finish what I started." Adam said with a smirk, walking past Pyrrha.

"Do you think I'll just let you leave?"

"Do you think you can stop me?" Adam said, not even turning his head to acknowledge the female gladiator. As he walked down the street Pyrrha could only watch as the man left his wake of destruction. The street looked like it had just gone through a Grimm attack. The concrete around was practically all glassed, most of the area was now covered in a layer of glass and the structures that did remain had either human sized holes or massive gashes crisscrossing their walls.

It didn't matter that the enemy retreated. This… Pyrrha thought as she looked towards the unconscious bodies of Lie Ren and Jaune Arc… Was undoubtably a huge loss for Team JNPR. She hardly noticed as Yang walked up from behind her.

"Shit…" Yang whistled in awe of the destruction. "What happened here."

"A damn slaughter, blondie." Franky grunted from his spot on the ground. "We got lucky…"

"You call this luck?" Yang asked incredulously, gesturing her arms towards the downed Arc and orange haired android.

"He's a monster… Heh they both are." Franky chuckled weakly, resting his massive forearms on his disproportionally smaller knees.

"Let's get them out of here." Yang said, grimacing at the damage done. She then turned to her red haired companion, "Pyrrha?"

"Call Nora," She said weakly to her scroll. "Emergency code: Baratie." She never understood Jaune's naming sense for codes or combos. But using them made her feel like it was going to be alright. Like he was going to make it.

—

Blake had to hand it to Sun. He made the waiting game more entertaining than her-Robin's former partners from Baroque Works or the Revolutionary Army did. She didn't exactly approve of his method of obtaining food, but she was a pirate in her former life so it wasn't exactly fair for her to judge. As night fell on the docks she checked her scroll one last time, looking at the pictures of Ruby, and Yang on the screen. Oh how she so desperately wished to contact them but she couldn't, they wouldn't accept her as she was. Her thoughts, and eye, then turned to Jaune. What would he say? After she had run away yet again.

"So… How many guys would you say are down there?" Sun asked, from his perch, hanging upside down off of a railing.

"Enough to turn us into a quite accurate replica of Swiss cheese. Why? Getting second thoughts?" Blake asked, blank faced before switching to a teasing smile.

"You're a strange one kitty, but damn can't say I don't appreciate your sense of humor." Sun chuckled weakly as he scratched the back of his neck. "So run the plan by me one more time." He said with a grin, receiving an eye roll and loud sigh from Blake.

"Scope the place out, find the cargo and who's running the show." Blake said calmly, "Then execute them like the traitorous dog they are."

"How… Do you know if the leader's a dog?"

"I don't." Blake said before taking off in a jog towards the edge of the roof and jumping off of it. When Sun ran over to check to see where she landed Blake had already disappeared into the darkness.

"The things I do to get the girl." Sun said, shaking his head with a smile on his face before he too took off. When he jumped he pressed his palms together and immediately a glowing aura clone of himself appeared next to him and threw the Faunus huntsman forward, allowing him to make it to the crane across the street by the docks. With monkey-like climbing skills he latched onto the crane and began to climb to the top to get a bird's eye view of the area. The docks were teeming with White Fang grunts. From his viewpoint he couldn't manage to tell what kind of Faunus they were, not even the orange haired guy standing in the center with two large briefcases. He was different, out of uniform and directing the grunts around him. Sun assumed he was the one in charge of this little operation. "Wait…" Sun said to himself, his eyes widening in realization. "That's… Gotta find Blake. This might be bad.

Down with the cat Faunus in question she was having quite an easy time evading the grunts. A lifetime, or rather a past life, of avoiding the eyes of the whole world made slipping by the eyes of barely trained terrorists almost too easy for her. The shipping crates at the docks were marked with the Schnee family insignia, seems they were the ones robbing the Dust stores. Blake was not naive enough to delude herself into thinking it was an impossibility, merely holding onto the sliver of hope that it was someone besides them. Then she wouldn't have to step in.

As she walked she kept a grip on the handle of Gambol Shroud's katana.

 _click_

"Turn around girl." A gruff voice whispered to her. Blake had to suppress the desire to roll her eyes. She took her hand off the handle and then crossed her arms. "Didn't you mmph!"

"Dos Fleur: Clutch." She said calmly, continuing her walk and ignoring the sound of the man's spine being broken. She had more important things to deal with than a random scrub. Though, the cat Faunus paused, she should be more careful. Her skills must be slipping if she was found, or it could just be luck. Definitely luck.

 _"Blake."_ Sun's voice sounded over the scroll. They had communications open, not her choice, but under the threat of Sun informing RWBY or JNPR about their whereabouts.

"Yes?" She answered quietly, exasperation in her tone.

 _"We got a complication. Torchwick's here."_ Her expression morphed into a murderous scowl. The reincarnate then drew her katana in a fluid motion. Master thief he may be to the masses, but to the underworld? He was a psychopath, and more than that a powerful one. The man always got what he wanted, no matter how many had to fall beforehand.

"Fantastic." Blake groaned, flicking her katana so that it transformed into the pistol form. She could hear voices up ahead through the crates. From what her Observation Haki had shown her one of the figures ahead had a similar figure to Torchwick, and was carrying something incredibly powerful. Steeling her nerves, Blake dashed forward and leapt towards Torchwick, catching him in a chokehold and pointing her gun to his head before any of the grunts could react. Bright stage lights shone down on them, revealing to Blake just _how_ outgunned she and Sun were in this situation.

"Really? You animals can't stop _one_ girl from sneaking by?" The red haired thief whined, Amateurs." He spat, turning his head ever so slightly. Just enough that he could catch a glimpse of Blake. "What can I do you for, kitty? If you couldn't tell I'm a little busy."

"White Fang, how are you working with this man?" Blake asked the assembled grunts, who all had their weapons trained on her. "He's scum, more than that he-"

"You didn't get the memo huh?" Roman asked, a lazy smirk on his face. "The White Fang and I have a… joint business going on right now. So I'd kindly ask you to leave our office." In the span of a few seconds Roman elbowed Blake, shoulder tossed her and without a care in the world he then straightened his jacket. He then grabbed his cane off the floor, a dull silvery blue as opposed to his former red and black weapon. "Or I'll have to show you what I did to cats growing up." He then twirled the cane and pointed it at Blake.

"Try me." The reincarnated Devil Child said with a confident smirk. She then crossed her arms over her chest, concentrating on the powers of her Devil Fruit.

"Well, you heard her." Roman said to his grunts.

"Right, fire!" One of the ones in the front called out before they began to fire on the black haired Faunus girl. Elements screamed as they were fired from the guns: Fire, lightning, ice. All that could be seen was a massive smokescreen. However to the dismay of the White Fang grunts, and intrigue of the master thief, they could safely assume that their target was not dead. Why you might ask? Well two giant arms covering the body of the girl and not a single cry of pain would be an indicator.

"What is she?"

"Wait I've heard of this before this…"

"Is your demise." Blake's voice sounded from inside the arms. "Mil Fleur: Gigantesco Mano Slap!" She called out, and the arms spun outward, slapping all of the grunts into the exterior of the shipping crates. She didn't hit them hard enough to crush bone, just enough to send them into the realm of unconsciousness.

"Bravo, bravo. You're an interesting kitty if I do say so myself." The Huntress's cat like eyes panned upward to where Roman was sitting calmly atop a crate, one leg crossed over the other. He then pushed himself off of it and landed smoothly before adjusting his suit jacket. "What say you play with me now, kitty cat?" He smiled as he asked that, unperturbed by the hands sprouting around his neck. When they clamped down he smiled, "Why kitty, how did you know that choking was a turn on for me?" He asked before tearing the limbs off of his body.

"What…"

"Devil Fruit, right?" Roman asked, smirking as the petals of the dissolved limbs fluttered by his face. "Not the first I've dealt with. I found the easiest way to disable your pesky fruits is to just…" He clenched his fists before practically disappearing from Blake's sight in a blur of speed.

"Ghuk!" Blake's eyes widened as a fist was rammed into her gut. Spit flew out of her mouth and to her horror as she looked down she saw it. A shining obsidian hand.

"Will them away." His calm smile quickly shifted into a sadistic grin as he brought his cain up with his other hand and slammed it on Blake's back, sending her crashing to the ground.

"Haki…" The reincarnate of Nico Robin growled.

"Oh good, you know what it is. I wasn't planning on monologuing for you so it's good that y'know curiosity won't be killing you today, kitty." Roman said while spinning his cane in his hand. He then pointed the barrel end at Blake. "I will. Hot Beat." He said as heated winds began to build up in the barrel of his weapon before shooting a fireball at Blake.

The cat faunus dodged it by rolling to the side. She then drew her own weapon and switched it to pistol form and began firing with one arm behind her back.

Roman tried to dodge the oncoming bullets but found himself stuck in place thanks to the two hands that sprouted from the ground and were holding his legs firmly in place. "Clever girl." He muttered as he tapped the end of his cane. The orb on top then opened up and another end of the weapon extended. Roman then spun the weapon in front of himself to deflect the bullets. He then reached for his waist and pulled out another orb connected to a staff segment and placed it on the end of the rod. After completing his weapon his slammed it on the ground and grinned, watching the petals of the destroyed limbs fly by.

"How…?"

"You like it? I dug up some old artifacts, or rather a friend of mine did." Roman chuckled, spinning the staff with expert ease as he stalked towards Blake. "They're called Dials, want to see what they can do?" He then ran in towards Blake, but stopped half way there and snapped his head towards his right. An instant later a staff wielding monkey faunus descended on him ready to smash his head like a watermelon. Roman then dodged to the side and caught his opponent's staff low with his own.

"Y'know I used to look up to you." Sun chuckled, moving his staff back and spinning it towards Roman who blocked again.

"Oh a fan? I'm flattered!" Roman laughed, holding the barrel end out towards Sun. "Here's my autograph. Cool Beat!" Instead of hot air this time like many would believe, this time a glacial blast shot out, freezing Sun's limbs and weapon with the ice from the blast.

"Ah!" The monkey faunus cried out in pain as he was knocked to the ground, his aura shielding him from any physical damage worse than some light bruising. However he was still weighed down by his ice encased limbs.

"Sun!" Blake screamed as she charged in, her sword poised to stab right through Roman's back. She would have succeeded, however Roman had activated his Armament Haki and the attack was fruitless. Sparks flew from the contact as she repositioned herself in between Roman and her downed comrade. She then attacked again but Roman intercepted and redirected her blade with his staff.

"You're persistent, but I'm not interested in getting a pet." Roman taunted with a smirk plastered across his face. After disengaging from their clash he re-adjusted his bowler cap and began to spin his strange weapon. "Let's see how you like this!" He cackled as storm clouds began to form, much lower than they normally would, in fact they only hovered a few feet above Blake's area. "Thunderbolt Tempo!" He intoned, and the clouds let out a massive blast of electricity on top of the reincarnate.

"Gyaaah!" Blake screamed out in agony as her body was wracked with lightning. Her Haki could only block so much of the damage, leaving her clothes singed and various burns across her body. The huntress in training fell to her knees, her fists clenched as she glared at her opponent. His weapon finally made sense to her. She knew where she had seen it before. In the hands of her former crewmate, her friend, a thief of equal skill but much kinder heart. A woman who dared to map the entire Grand Line, and controlled the weather like breathing. "Nami…?" She croaked weakly.

Roman stood tall and stared at the downed Faunus. "How do you know that name?" He asked, anger lacing his tone. He ran over and picked the girl up by the collar of her shirt. "Where did you learn that name?"

"Don't… You… Remember?" Blake asked, hope and fear in her eyes. "Don't you remember your… Friends?" She asked the master thief.

"Friends?" Roman asked, his voice hollow. "Friends are just enemies in hiding!" He snarled, cracking Blake across the face with the back of his hand.

"Nami… Don't you remember? Nico Robin?" Blake whispered. Hoping that it was her new appearance-life-identity that was causing the confusion in her genderbent friend.

"Oh." Roman chuckled, dropping Blake to the ground and chuckling. His chuckles then turned into full blown laughter. "This is just the icing on the cake. I get my ancestor's tools, and I get to meet one of her partners in crime in the same day." What? That threw Blake through a loop. Ancestor? As in he was Nami's descendent? That would explain his knowledge of Haki and chosen profession. Though Blake had hardly considered the possibility of any of her crewmates having descendants whose lineage survived to this day. "Though I have to ask, how _did_ you get here?" Roman asked, propping her chin up on the front of his shoe so she could look up at him. "This isn't your time, pirate."

"Screw you." Blake snapped.

"Oh I like your attitude." Roman said with a grin.

 _"For once we're in agreement."_ The cold feeling she got when Robin spoke to her returned. _"I don't like someone with such an… Aggravating personality carrying on like this and tarnishing the name of my friend."_

 _"So you'll help?"_ The faunus asked the personality remnant of her past life. _"Or just mock me again?"_

 _"A fair bit of both to be honest. But just this once."_ Robin's voice said in an uncaring tone. _"So go take your Aura and Semblance. And beat that idiot."_ Blake felt her aura returning immediately. Like a shot of adrenaline, it shot through her veins and filled her with energy.

On shaky legs she pushed herself to her feet. Roman had already turned away and began walking towards the chopper on the helipad. "We're not done here." Blake said through grit teeth, grabbing the handle of her sword and pulling the trigger. A bullet flew towards Roman, though it didn't matter as he caught it out of the air.

"Observation Haki." He said calmly, "Well now Devil Child. Let's see if you live up to the legends." He then turned back to face Blake again. The battle between the reincarnated Straw Hat and the descendent of one of her comrades was only beginning.

 **And that's where I'll end it for now. Next chapter will be the Volume 1 Finale Part 1. It'll finish up the Roman fight. Anyway onto the breakdown of the chapter. You might be wondering what Nora's up to and well, she doesn't have much to do yet. I have plans for her but they take place mostly in the next Volume and the following one.**

 **Jaune's semblance was a hard concept for me. I wanted to make it something related to who he is now, not the healing shit he has in canon (or boost whatever). So I call it "Flames of Rage". Very similar to Yang's except instead of absorbing attacks and getting stronger the madder she gets; Jaune's rage fuels his flames. The angrier he gets the hotter they are, and also the faster they drain his aura. They can be used for his Diable Jambe techniques, however those techniques can still be used without sufficient aura through the normal means.**

 **Ren, while I wanted to have him fight more, I couldn't really see him doing much to Adam even with Paper Arts and Shave. Remember, Adam and Roman are _actual_ threats in this story. He's not gonna get punked by a tackle from his ex (ALL OF MY HATE FOR THAT SCENE) or get eaten by a random Gryphon while he wins (ALSO ALL OF MY HATE POSSIBLY MORE). They are top dogs for a reason, and they'll keep proving it. As for Jaune getting beat? Adam's a top tier swordsman. I'd place him at Momonga's level or maybe a little below since we haven't seen his full power yet. Factor in his Electro, (cursed) named sword and his absorption semblance… Well he's kind of a match for Jaune. Maybe even more than that for now.**

 **As for Roman? Well I'm happy nobody guessed just who he was. One reviewer was close saying he was Usopp's descendent. I was toying with the idea of making him Nami's reincarnate for about a minute before deciding to make him a descendent of her's instead. The reason being that Nami isn't particularly cutthroat nor a frontline fighter. Roman on the other hand I figured would arm him with those skills to make him worth the hype the show tried to build for him. He doesn't have the insane weather reading ability Nami has but he can still use her weapon he assembled from blueprints. Anyway I wanted these two fights to make Brobin and Jaunji struggle, a lot. Hell I was having trouble closing the Adam fight since I couldn't decide if it should be a double KO or Jaune loses.**

 **Like hell I'm letting my villains get punked. These guys are supposed to be roadblocks for the heroes, not speedbumps. Anyway next chapter will be up within the month. Again, sorry for the wait and thank you guys for your patience.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Well it's been a long ass time that's for sure. To be honest I've deleted this draft a bunch of times and thought about quitting but here I am.**

 **Jaguarian76: Right genre, wrong gender, wrong series. I may have swapped ape or something with the wrong word, but I was thinking Viral from Gurren Lagann.**

 **Roland's Blade: Well thanks for the review anyway man, and I'm glad my humor hit home with someone.**

 **Greer123: Big thanks my g**

 **YOROZUYA43: Pick any non Straw Hat male for your headcanon. Personally? I vote affair with Bege. Y'know cuz she's loves the money**

 **merendinoemiliano:Thanks for another review, and sorry about another wait. And yeah I love the new One Piece elements… Gonna have to hold my opinion on the Shusui replacement for now. Blake would be OP wouldn't she? Guess we'll have to see if she'll unlock it won't we? And Franky's memories will come up later, don't worry. I have something very specific planned for it.**

 **a prick: no he's actually Zoro but I don't want to tell any of the others. Keep that a secret for me, ok?**

Storm clouds brewed and churned angrily, spewing lightning at the reincarnated huntress as Roman spun his staff like a mad conductor. Blake was doing all she could to dodge the assault but her stamina was beginning to wane. The cat Faunus let out a grunt of annoyance, fighting in this manner was most definitely not her forte. In her previous life she had taken up the role of being the unofficial infiltration specialist of the Straw Hat Pirates. She had also used a fair bit of trickery, but that was useless against his Haki defenses. If only Zoro were here, he would love to actually be able to beat on Nami, or her descendent, without fearing the wrath of his chivalrous rival. Speaking of said rival, she was now regretting blocking the leader of JNPR's Scroll number. How she regretted her decision to not let Jaune help. If he were here he would be able to break through the thief's Armament with ease.

 _"More weak thoughts?"_ The remnant of Robin taunted her, causing the Faunus to scowl in response. _"I suppose relying on Sanji is something I did too though so I can't judge."_

"Shut! Up! Mils Fleur: Stomp!" Blake screamed, both to her backseat driver and the cheshire grinning crime lord she was fighting. After crossing her arms two massive legs bloomed from the ground next to her and slammed down on Roman with shocking speed.

 _Kra-koom!_

Dust exploded from the point of contact, Blake felt her arms shake in protest against the opposing force. In a fight between two Armament Haki users it came down to only three factors: proficiency, skill and stamina. Well, Roman had her beat in proficiency, made evident by his usage of the shining obsidian armor granted by mastery of that form of Haki. Her only options were to outwit, and somehow hopefully outlast him.

"Cool Beat!" Roman's voice called out and immediately a cryogenic explosion froze the feet of Blake's leg constructs. He then twirled his cane around his body before holding it up high, "Fireball Tempo!" He shouted as a massive gout of flames exploded first from his Clima-Tact that burned the construct legs so bad they turned back into petals. Smoke built up from the flames and Roman waited. He held the advantage, no need to be hasty.

"Forgot about me?" A cheerful voice asked from his left. Roman turned his head to see the monkey Faunus standing next to him with his arms crossed and a cheeky grin on his face. Sun then whipped his nunchucks out and locked them into staff form. "Let's do this!" Sun leapt at Roman with his staff raised high above his head intent on smashing the crime lord's head like a watermelon.

"Damn dirty ape!" Roman growled as he blocked the attack. Sparks flew from the contact of metal as Sun tried his hardest to push through the elder fighter's defenses. However, gravity could only provide so much assistance before Haki won out.

"Gah!" Sun cried out as he was pushed back. Roman then switched the staff to his back hand and delivered a kick to Sun's chest before following up with an elbow strike between the ribs. Sun let out a gasp of pain before he was sent tumbling across the ground, his Aura barely shielding him from the strike.

"Sun!" Blake called out as she crossed her arms again, "Dos fleur!" Two hands sprouted up around Roman's ankles and held him in place. They didn't hold for long, but just long enough for Blake to close the distance and slash at him with her sword. The two then engaged in a deadly dance of steel. Roman, spinning his staff with expertise only years of combat would grant, easily blocked each of Blake's rapid stabs. The cat Faunus could only do so much against her opponent. Unlike Jaune her. training was never geared towards becoming a physical monster in the last life, leaving her a little behind compared to him in raw power. And it would be her downfall.

 _"Look out!"_ Robin's voice screamed from her mind.

Roman's staff lashed out and lodged itself right between her ribs. The fight seemed to stop for a moment as Blake was held in place by the staff. Gravity, however, quickly took hold and the Huntress in training was sent flying and tumbling across the ground before her motion was stopped by her slamming into one of the many crates. The metal crunched and bent around her, leaving an awkward indent in the crate.

"You kids… Kinda suck." Roman said, yawning into his hand as he did so, clearly uninterested in his adversary. "Least Atlas's boss packs a punch. You chimp and chump," He said, pointing to Sun and Blake respectively, "need to get your Stamina Up. Least if you want to hang with me, I'm something of a Juggernaut." He then cracked his neck and slammed one end of the Clima-Tact into the ground causing sparks to dance around his feet.

Blake snarled as she pushed herself to her knees. One hand clutching her chest and the other holding Gambol Shroud in a death grip. That last blow definitely cracked a few ribs and it took everything in the cat Faunus's power to even stand. She flipped the blade into reverse grip and bit down on the cloth to pull more out before charging in. Even if her Aura failed her… She had to fight on.

 _"We have to fight on."_ Robin reminded her. _"I'm in this fight as much as you are."_

Right, _they_ had to fight on. A kid would die because of her and her weakness…. How could she ever look Luffy in the eyes if that were the case? How could she look at Nami if she didn't stop her descendent from tarnishing her name?

"TORCHWICK!" She bellowed, blurring forward as the ground cracked beneath her footstep. First the long cloth sash wrapped around the ginger man's wrist, pulling his arm down. Then she struck, and for a moment her blade shone with an obsidian sheen.

 _fwish_

Roman tilted his head to the side with an expression between shock and excitement. The slash came too fast for his Haki to perceive, almost as if she faded from his senses. A fresh cut tore through his jacket, blood leaking through his snow white shirt. Blake would have followed up to kill him had he not grabbed her ankle with the hook of his cane and pulled her to the ground. Blake was then forced to roll out of the way from a bolt of lightning before scrambling to her feet. Roman kept twirling his staff like a demented conductor and summoning more bolts to rain down on Blake. However the former Straw Hat had experience against the Clima-Tact's primary form of attack and was able to dodge the attacks with grace and get some distance.

Blake then crossed her arms with a look of fierce determination in her eyes. Flower petals began to rise from the ground as she ran forward, "Gigantesco Mano: Boxing!" The petals rose in a massive tornado revealing two massive arms with their hands clenched into fists. The arms then descended on Roman and began pounding the ground. The thief was forced to jump between the falling fists and flying rubble, so as not to be crushed into paste. One of the hands actually did manage to hit Roman out of the air like a flyswatter, sending him tumbling to the ground.

Blake took this opportunity to let that arm disappear as the other descended on him to pin him. As the arm raised back up the woman formerly known as the Devil Child leapt forward, her blade poised to skewer Torchwick's head.

 _klang!_

If only he didn't narrowly avoid being kebab'd by tilting his head to the side. _"Haki."_ She and her past self growled.

While Blake struggled to pull the blade out of the ground Roman began to formulate a plan to free himself. He couldn't quite move his limbs, and going all out on someone who can't even manifest true Armament wasn't really his style. Still though, it felt as if he was missing something.

"You know I feel like I'm supposed to have grunts…" Roman muttered to himself, straining his neck to look around the now, completely wrecked, docks. He then spotted a group of White Fang grunts standing around at their old posts. "Hey I don't pay you animals to play dead! Kill these assholes already! There's just two of them!" Roman bemoaned to his pack of White Fang fodder who were _supposed_ to be helping move the cargo out. A job which was being interrupted by the two Huntsmen in training.

"Charge!" And with the call of the age old battle cry the assembled White Fang swarmed Blake and Sun. The cat Faunus could not keep Roman pinned and defend herself and Sun at the same time, giving Roman the time he needed to grab his Clima-Tact off the ground and wade through the crowd towards the one area of the docks still in tact, the warehouse. He'd be damned if he-

Roman sharply turned his head in the opposite direction before dodging in a roll. And not a moment to soon as a sniper round pierced the ground where he once stood. "Observation Haki, gotta love it." The self proclaimed master thief chuckled to himself. "You'll have to try better than that! Bring your A-game if you want to kill _me_!" He cackled, jabbing a finger at his chest as he taunted his assailant.

"Team RWBY, charge!" An awfully familiar voice shouted. If the sounds of his meat shields screaming in pain and new voices in the mix were anything to go by; Roman could tell this was going to be a headache. In a miniature tornado of rose petals the girl from the night of the botched Dust shop robbery appeared in front of him. She gave him a cocky smirk and unclipped her weapon from her back, snapping it into rifle mode.

Correction, a big headache.

"Hello, Red." Roman said with a tight smile. That night had caused him a lot of trouble. Both with Junior for never paying him for the hired 'help' and with _her_ for making her expose herself to the witch. "Isn't it a little past your bedtime?" He asked casually, twirling his Clima-Tact.

"I have to bring back my teammate." Ruby said, shrugging her shoulders. She then swung her weapon around, unfolding the scythe blade from within.

—

After Ruby's declaration of their presence, Yang descended into the battle with gusto. Her body was still a little sore from sparring with Pyrrha, though at the moment she was more pissed at the jabronis who thought they could hurt _her_ friend and get away with it. The blonde daughter of Taiyang cracked her neck before pounding her fists together, releasing a loud clang. "Come get some-" She began to taunt with a cocky grin.

 _Bang!_

Yang ducked out of habit from the shot going off so close to her. To her relief though, she was not the target. Instead it was the White Fang grunt, who was now getting beat on by the, kinda hot if she had to admit it, monkey Faunus from earlier.

"No need to thank me for the save." He said with a sunny grin, twirling his staff in his hands before transforming it into its nunchaku form. "Faunus like these give guys like me a bad rep."

"Didn't you… Sneak into Vale?" Yang asked with a raised eyebrow, still no less grateful for the assist.

"Exactly! How am I supposed to be a small time Faunus crook with these guys making everyone think I'm with them. Can't even steal fruit without police thinking I'm planning an attack." He exclaimed before leveling one of the nunchaku at the White Fang grunt in front of the others. "Not cool bro."

The grunt in question pointed to himself and tilted his head in confusion, "Uh… what?" right before Sun slammed his nuchaku into the man's ribs.

"Not cool at all." He whispered, picking himself up and looking back at Yang. "Well? You want in?" He asked, grinning the same cheerful grin as before. As if on an unsaid cue the battle resumed, this time the terrorists focusing on the Faunus who opposed them.

"Like hell I'm getting shown up by Blake's new fuckbuddy." Yang snorted with a grin, leaping into the fray and delivering a Superman punch right into one of the Fang's masks, crushing it and the bones in his nose instantly as he was sent flying away.

 _Click_

Ember Celica snapped into place and Yang smirked, kneeling down and placing both arms in front of her before unloading on the grunts with her shot gauntlets. Last time she unloaded both magazines at once it left her arms numb for weeks. Last time she did that she was also 15.

"RAAAAAGH!" Yang screamed with murderous glee in her eyes as she fired on the hapless grunts. Her arms buckled slightly under the strain around the eighth shot from her left gauntlet, but she kept firing until she was empty. The voluptous blonde raised her fists in a classic boxing stance and blew the smoke away, grinning at the remaining grunts.

"Damn girl." Sun said after smashing a dog or wolf Faunus, she guessed by the tail, with his nunchaku. He backed away slightly as she reloaded, her eyes red and a fire blazing behind her. Sun then patted the nearest White Fang grunt on the shoulder and shook his head solemnly. "I do _not_ envy you, man." He said before jumping away as Yang began her carnage anew.

That crazy blonde could handle herself… Maybe he should see what Blake's up to.

"Hey you!" A shout caught his attention, and not a moment too soon as Sun had to use his monkey like reflexes to dodge a massive spiked ball attached to a chain. The blonde's head whipped towards the direction of the attack and promptly gulped when he was face to face with an absolutely _massive_ boar Faunus with a red mohawk. man wore no mask to cover his face, not that one of the standard ones would fit with his tusks. The man was large both in height and weight, standing at about what Sun assumed was 7 feet and weighing in at around… Well a lot more than Sun did. "You think you can betray your race and not be punished?"

"Hey quick question is it cannibalism if you eat pork?" Sun asked the man, cocking his head to the side _ever so innocently_. Silence fell between the two for a moment, right before the large White Fang member began barreling towards Sun like a runaway train.

On second thought, maybe he should worry about himself before Blake.

"Whup!" Sun hollered as he jumped onto an adjacent crate to avoid the charging behemoth of a Faunus. He then had to suppress a gulp of fear as the man straight up ran _through_ the crates without stopping. "You sure you're not a bull Faunus?" Sun taunted, doing everything in his power to keep his voice level.

The man snorted, turning back around to face Sun and began to spin his flail. Taking this as his sign to act, Sun snapped Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang back into staff form and strapped it to his back. He then adopted a meditative pose and was outlined with a golden aura which then split off into two facsimiles of himself. "Let's get him boys!" Sun hollered, pumping his fist which prompted his doppelgängers to do the same.

The trio of Suns rushed at the boar Faunus, two from atop crates and one on the ground. As they neared him they each drew their own Ruyi Jingu Bang. The first to reach their target was the copy that chose the left flank. He met his end by a massive fist swatting him away. The second, the one attacking down the front, met a similar fate to the flail. The last Sun, the real Sun, jumped at him from behind, staff raised high above his head as he prepared to smash his opponent's own.

Too bad he forgot about the man's own weapon, and his staff was easily knocked out of his hands by the rotational force of the flail, and then he was too.

"Shiiiit!" Sun groaned as he pulled himself to his feet. The fat bastard's attack knocked him clean onto another crate. He'd be feeling that one in the morning, no Aura shield blocking that.

Out of the corner of his eye he spotted the white haired member of Blake's team, the Schnee, practically dancing through a swathe of grunts. If he weren't fighting for his life he might've stopped to admire the beauty of her fighting style. Speaking of the fight…

 _Thump thump thump_

Yep, big and ugly was making another charge. Thankfully this time Sun had the high ground and was able to jump over the man and to the clearing in the grunts where Weiss was.

"You!" Weiss stepped back in shock, pointing her rapier at Sun before he put his hands up.

"Hey, hey I'm on your side!" Sun called out, "I came with Blake!" He said, clutching his ribs as he ducked under a grunt's swing before lashing out with a punch to the bull Faunus's rocky mountain oysters. He watched with a wince as the man fell, but to be fair Sun fought dirty. He then glared at Weiss, "That prove it?" He grunted, dropping into his stance again. Not having his staff was a huge detriment to him during this fight. Sure his gauntlets protected his arms from any blades, but against the big guy? Yeah he'd need some more firepower. "Because right now I'm down a weapon and got a big guy on my tail… Not literally." He added, swishing his golden tail for emphasis.

"You have a plan?" Weiss asked, pirouetting around one grunt only to encase him in ice before stabbing at another with lightning quick speeds.

"Uhhhh," Sun droned, looking back and forth between her and the large Faunus charging at them at increasing paces before slamming a fist into an open palm. "I got it! Give me some fire Dust!" He called out, and thankfully the Schnee complied quickly. After catching the crystal in his hand, Sun quickly charged it with Aura until glowing orange cracks began to form on the red crystal. It was a bit crude, but his uncle taught him how to use raw Dust crystals as grenades. Only downside was how volatile they were, but considering his options… "Fire in the hole!" Sun hollered, lobbing the crystal at his opponent. The boar Faunus readied his flail to bat away the projectile and it almost worked, had it not detonated on impact.

 _Fwoosh!  
_

Sun winced and looked away from the now screaming Faunus as he was engulfed in flames. Yeesh, that'd be a sucky way to go. He let out a silent prayer for the man, hoping he hadn't killed him, when the screaming stopped and a loud _thump_ followed.

"They beat Pete?" One of the grunts gasped.

"Oh hell no, I'm not dying for some human!"

"Let's get out of here!"

And with that the grunts began to run away from them. As they cleared out, Weiss sent a concerned back at Sun who was clutching his ribs again. He gave her a thumbs up and a grin as he began to walk back towards the direction he came from. "My Aura's shot and I gotta find my weapon. I, I'm gonna sit the rest out. Knock em dead for me and…" His expression turned a little somber, "Look out for Blake, will ya?"

Weiss let a small smirk cross her face, "Like you even had to ask."

—

Roman had to suppress the will to lash out at the girl immediately. Though he couldn't be too hasty with the Devil Child around. If he messed up this operation… Not only would the flame _bitch_ have his head, the kids would never let him live it down. He only hoped that Neo finished her role soon so she could come assist. For now though, the thief smirked and swung his staff towards Ruby. "Thunderbolt Tempo!" Roman called out, his grin maniacal as lightning descended on the Huntress in training. Ruby dodged with ease, her frame blurring through the electric attacks as she closed in on Roman. The girl lashed out with her scythe, attempting to hit Roman with the outer edge though he dodged and she overextended leaving the blade coming out past his back hip.

"Pulling me from behind?" Roman murmured, picking up on the true intent of the move with his Observation Haki. He then seamlessly activated his Armament in preparation for the coming attack. Ruby tightened her grip on Crescent Rose before pulling, trying to catch Roman with the blade.

 _klang!_

Oh the blade did indeed hook onto Roman. However it did not have the intended effect. In fact, even when she tried to use her speed Semblance to pull in the direction opposite of him he still would not budge. It was then with wide eyes that Ruby came to a terrible realization.

"Haki." Her silver eyes widened as she tried to unhook her scythe from the orange haired thief, however he was pulling against her so hard that it was all she could do to not be disarmed completely. "Oh crapba-"

"Ding ding ding!" Roman exclaimed, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Now here's your prize!" He announced, pointing the barrel end of his staff at Ruby, the hole. lighting up with a brilliant flash of electricity. Lightning arced up the staff towards Roman's arm, tearing up the sleeve but he paid it no mind. His face was alight with manic glee and his green eyes shone in the light of his weapon. "Thunder Beat." He said the name of the attack calmly. The tone was apt, as the words were the calm before the storm. A ball of electrical energy rocketed out of the Clima-Tact, hitting Ruby dead on. With Roman's Haki protecting him. only his clothes took damage in the backlash of using the attack at close range. His suit was almost entirely burned through at this point, revealing a black undershirt clinging to a well hidden powerful physique.

Ruby on other hand was not so lucky. Her screams echoed across the harbor as the lightning coursed through her body. She dropped Crescent Rose instantly, the weapon clattering to the ground next to the screaming girl. Her clothes were burnt and the smell of burnt skin filled the air. The silver eyed girl tried to reach for her weapon, or at least to crawl away but it was to no avail.

Roman stalked toward his prey with a demented smirk on his face, his staff twirling lazily in his hand. "You cost me a good suit, Red." He muttered, chuckling to himself all the while. "You cost me many things." His expression soured as he practically snarled the words; his tone shifting almost instantly. "My money." He said, punctuating it with a kick to her ribs. "My Dust." Another kick, this one. sending Ruby sprawling. Roman reared his foot back for another kick to the downed girl's ribs, "My respec-" He looked down after feeling a tug on his leg. With a roll of his eyes he pulled his foot free from the hand that sprouted up from the ground.

"Oh you have got to be fucking kidding me." Roman groaned, aiming his Clima-Tact into the shadows as he tried to locate the reincarnated Devil Child with his Observation Haki.

"I'd prefer you not do that." Blake said, her voice weary, but her tone was hard. More worrying, Roman could not tell where she was from the sound of her voice. This was her game, Nico Robin was known in her first life for being able to fade away into the shadows at the drop of a hat. He assumed her new identity had much the same skill. And with Haki at her disposal it was almost an even playing field.

If the night hadn't already been going so poorly Roman might have allowed himself to smile at a legitimate challenge approaching.

 _Bang!_

"Damn," He muttered, cursing himself for not being more observant. The dumb animal had actually got a shot off on him. nowhere vital, but still his shoulder would be hurting for weeks. "Come out come out, kitty cat." He said in a sing song tone of voice through grit teeth. This was beginning to get annoying. He shouldn't have played around so much, not when facing one of the Straw Hats. He quickly turned his head to the left, picking up on the Faunus's intent and blocked the next bullet she fired with his Haki covered fist.

"Gotcha." Roman said with a smirk, opening his palm to reveal a crushed bullet shell resting in the obsidian appendage. He then switched his grip on his Clima-Tact so that he was holding it a little above the middle sphere and leveled the barrel end in the direction of where Blake shot at him. "Hot Beat." With the command a blast of flames shot out towards where the bullet was fired from. He missed, but he saw the shadow of the cat Faunus running in between the crates to the left and his face split with a wicked grin. He then began to spin his Clima-Tact rapidly, spewing clouds at a rate even Jaune would be jealous of before speaking. "Thunderbolt Tempo." He enunciated clearly.

From her downed position Ruby could only helplessly look up towards the angry storm clouds in the ahead as they opened up, releasing a massive bolt on the docks. "Blake…" She coughed weakly, _"Please… Don't die."_ The. young girl thought in prayer for her teammate before slipping from consciousness.

 _"GAAAAAAH!"_ A howl of pain came from the area where Roman's electric attack struck down accompanied by a blinding flash and a cloud of dust, the regular kind, exploding outward blinding Ruby, and even those further away from their skirmish.

—

It was as if the whole battle had come to a pause. Yang, mid punching a mook into the pavement, looked up in shock, no pun intended, and fear for her sister and partner as the attack crashed down. Her fight with Johnathan had illuminated a simple truth to her. There were true monsters in the world, men who made the Grimm look like nothing. And with the massive attacks the orange haired man was throwing around… She was quickly coming to the realization that Roman Torchwick was among those monsters. Almost mechanically she began to make her way towards the crate filled area of the docks where Ruby had gone to face off with Torchwick. The blonde brawler was so engrossed in her own rage she didn't even notice the White Fang grunts closing in on her, or Weiss and Sun taking out said grunts in her wake. She didn't even have time to marvel at a Schnee fighting in perfect synchronization with a Faunus. It would be awe inspiring.

If only she weren't _so damn worried_ about her little sister.

When the Y and W of RWBY and their Faunus ally reached the area where they knew the fight to be they were confused by the scene in front of them. Dreadfully, they resigned themselves to the idea of a charred body and a cackling crime lord. They did not expect to see a stone figure of Blake crumbling to dust before their eyes as the _real_ Blake stood in front of Torchwick, sword drawn and bloodied with the man clutching the stump of the arm where he once held his Clima-Tact.

Yang was shocked, for all that she wanted to believe that Blake was only in the White Fang for the protests in the old days she couldn't deny the facts any further.

Not with Roman Torchwick's arm lying on the ground, soaked in blood. She would hate to be in that position.

"You… _fucking filthy ingrate!_ " The red haired man seethed, his eyes wide with madness and pain. "I'll kill you… I'll kill your little friend in front of you before ripping your animal heart out you _wh_ -" It was only thanks to his Observation Haki that he narrowly avoided getting his head blown off by Ember Celica.

"Get the hell away from my sister." Yang snarled, her eyes flashing to a ruby red and an aura of flames eerily similar to Jaune's appeared around her.

"And," Weiss said cooly as she pointed Myrtenaster at Torchwick, the Dust chamber spinning rapidly in anticipation of its mistress's attack. "Don't even think about laying a hand on _either_ of my teammates." Her proclamation got a slight smirk out of the cat Faunus.

"Thank you Ms…" The reincarnate paused, shaking her head, "Weiss." Blake said with a nod and a smile, tipping her hat to her white themed teammate. "Though I'm sorry to say, this is between the two of us… It's a personal matter." Her exxpression quickly shifted to a cold glare once she turned back to facing Torchwick. She then switched Gambol Shroud to its pistol form and leveled the barrel at Torchwick's forehead. her finger was on the trigger, itching to squeeze it. The voice of Robin in her head _demanding_ that she erase this stain on her friend's good name.

"No, Blake." Yang said, her voice like a smoldering flame. "We'll hand him over to the authorities." Her statement left no room for arguments, but Blake still didn't budge.

"My apologies, Yang." Blake's tone was colder than the winter hell scape of northern Atlas. "You aren't the captain of the crew," Blake chuckled as she shook her head, "Slip of tongue… I mean team leader. I'm doing this so he won't hurt any of us, anyone else again." She then looked to the Schnee, who was noticeably stoic during the exchange between partners. "You understand that at least, don't you Weiss?" All eyes turned to the white themed girl, including a madly grinning Roman.

"I…" Weiss began to speak but found no noise coming out her mouth. Why? Why the hesitation? She _knew_ in her heart if they let Roman live, he'd escape. He's too strong for prison. And from what she could tell Haki wasn't even Aura based so the police had no way to contain him.

Blake was right. And she knew that. So why was it so damn hard to say it?

"Weiss…" Ruby's soft call of her name broke Schnee from her musing. That's right. If she let Blake go through with this she'd look like a kicked puppy… More than she did already. Poor thing.

A cold fury burned within Weiss. How _dare_ he hurt her teammate on her watch? If she wasn't to lead RWBY, then she would use her superior skill to protect and teach her frankly unprepared leader. He will pay… And the girl had a genius idea.

"Hand him over to Jaune." The W of RWBY said, crossing her arms. "Let him decide."

"About that…" Yang said, shifting her feet. "I got a message from Pyrrha on our way to the docks. Jaune got cut up pretty bad, so did Ren and the blue haired guy. He's alive but…"

"What?" Blake and Roman asked at the same time, glaring at one another for copying the other. "Who?" The cat faunus asked, but Roman's next words shocked her to her core."

"Taurus failed?" Roman asked, his scowl deepening as he spat. "Fucking dirty animal. _Ohh I can handle the chef I'm Adam Taurus oooooh._ Bullshit!" Roman ranted, mocking the Faunus leader.

"Adam…?" Blake asked, the hateful look in her eyes becoming one of shock. Her grip on her pistol slackened, if only for a second. However, a second was all Torchwick needed.

"Yeah I'll tell you all about him," Roman smirked, "Right after NEO GET ME THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, snapping Blake from her trance. She raised her weapon again, though unless she was drugged the air cracked next to Roman and outstepped a strangely dressed girl with pink and brown hair. She wore a white tail jacket, brown pants, and white high heeled boots. She was also carrying a parasol for some odd reason.

"The hell do you-" Yang began to speak before the girl appeared in front of her, placing a finger to Yang's lips and winking before flashing back to Roman. She then saluted playfully before the two vanished in another mirror like illusion. This all happened within the span of 5 seconds, leaving Weiss flabbergasted, Blake sulking, and Yang thoroughly pissed at the girl.

"The hell was that?" The blonde asked, her tone dead.

"I believe Roman called her Neo." Blake helpfully supplied. The cat faunus then let her shoulders sag in relief, along the rest of her body as the pressing danger, and adrenaline were gone. The White Fang members who weren't knocked out were swiftly fleeing after the brains of the operation fell. From the sound of sirens in the distance, the Vale police department should be handling them.

"So how's it feel?" The overly cheery voice of Sun asked as he stared down at her, a smile on his beaten face. He had been injured, but luckily his Aura protected him from the worst of the damage he would have suffered at the hands of the boar Faunus. "Playing the hero I mean?"

"Familiar." Blake answered some time, smiling at him. She then looked at the rest of her team, sans Ruby, and a downcast look crossed her face. "I-"

"Save it," Weiss said coldly, walking up to Blake, her expression unreadable. "I've had a lot to think about in the time you've been gone. I've lost sleep, fallen behind on homework, I've even gone up against men who wish me dead." Weiss's tone was harsh, "And all I have to say to you is… Let's go home." She said with a smile.

For the first time since reuniting Blake had a chance to look at the faces of her comrades. All of them were beaten and weary, sporting new cuts and bruises… Yet they smiled at her. Tears began to form in her eyes as images of a green haired swordsman, an orange haired woman wielding a staff like Torchwick's, a long nosed man with a strange giant slingshot, a bipedal reindeer and more appeared behind them.

 _"You found some good friends."_ Robin's voice said to her. _"I…I'm happy I was able to witness that."_ Her words faded into the storm of the rest of Blake's thoughts as tears freely streamed down her face.

"Yes, let's."

—

Within a warehouse on the other side of Vale was the hideout of Torchwick and Neo. It wasn't much, however it was enough for them to patch themselves up and lay low between jobs. Which was especially useful right now when Neo was patching her boss up after his fight with the girls. Either he was losing his touch, which she doubted, or Beacon was starting to produce some real monsters.

"Not a moment too soon, as alwa-hey watch it!" Roman Torchwick said to his assistant Neo, wincing as she pulled the bullet out of his shoulder. She then placed the tweezers, and the bullet on the side of the table they were sitting at in their hideout. "Gah that's gonna sting in the morning… Damn, well did you secure the package?" He asked, receiving a nod from the mute girl as a response. She then pulled a trigger out of her coat pocket and handed it to Roman. His expression giddy as he ran his thumb lightly over the bright red button. "Good, really good job Neo. And did you finish the _other_ order of business?" He asked, receiving another nod. "Atta'girl." He chuckled before leaning forward, and sticking the arm that held the trigger out. "Now let's make 'em _Smile!_ " He cackled, as he pressed the trigger.

—

Inside the main warehouse at the docks sat the briefcase that Torchwick had received from his ally. The case was locked tight, tighter than most things. Until the locks clicked open and the case unsealed itself, releasing a flood of steam across the floor. Through the clouds a pair of glowing golden eyes appeared along with a shadow. A shadow that quickly grew bigger, and bigger…

—

Ozpin hummed to himself as he sipped on his third, maybe fourth, cup of coffee of the day. He had to admit, the people of this era had truly perfected the-

 _Giantbeastdestructionaxotl_

He dropped his mug and was completely unaware as it shattered. He currently just experienced the strongest cry his Observation Haki had felt in _years_ , and he recognized the source. Oh he knew it all too well. Anyone would after Punk Hazard's files were released. And _of course_ Team RWBY was right next to where he felt it.

"Please be alright, children." He muttered, bolting up from his desk and grabbing his cane before blurring in Shave towards the elevator.

—

Pyrrha was thankful for Franky's help with carrying Jaune and Ren. She would have called Nora from the Bullhead, however with Franky already there it was a moot point. She was impressed that he was back on his feet with only a bottle of cola, though he said he wasn't combat ready. Which she doubted as he currently had both Jaune and his sister, who was also a machine, slung over each shoulder.

"Jeez," The former cyborg, now full android, groaned as he inspected the damage on his forearm. "This is going to take weeks to buff out by myself… And I gotta see the old man next week." He bemoaned.

"I'm sure you'll be fine." Pyrrha said, not turning lest she get a face full of Ren jacket. Let it be known that despite his lithe build, Ren was not that light. Was he putting on some muscle?

A groan was heard throughout the city, and the two still conscious fighters shared a look.

"No…" Jaune groaned, his voice weak. Franky stopped and laid the blonde down. "Gotta… We gotta… Go. To the… docks." He finished his sentence through his strained voice.

"Listen chef boy, I know you think you're hot shit but we look like we just went 9 rounds with a meat grinder." Franky huffed, "And I'm made of _Super_ tough metal. So that's saying something."

"Doesn't matter…" Jaune groaned, pushing himself up on his forearms through sheer force of will. "We have… to help them. Robin… Blake she won't be enough to stop it."

"Hold up, Nico Robin?" Franky asked, bewildered. "Alright, if we survive this you owe me some answers. Even if I ain't a part of your crew." The blue haired android snapped at Jaune.

"What can't Blake stop, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked, ignoring Franky in favor of questioning her leader. He had always been an enigma to the rest of them. He was so strong, yet he used no weapon nor went to a combat school. He didn't even use Aura before coming to Beacon! Not to mention his strange abilities, the fact he even had knowledge of abilities that he and Blake said were lost… Yes Jaune had secrets, and it was time he let her in.

"Smiley."

"What?" Pyrrha and Franky both asked the downed blonde.

—

 _"It's not a conventional Devil Fruit…"_

Blake looked towards the warehouse in terror as her senses screamed at her to get the hell out of dodge. She looked towards Sun who had a similar expression on his face. His animal instincts telling him to run, but his warrior instincts fighting it.

"We have to go!" Blake cried out, grabbing Sun's arm to pull herself to her feet and keeping hold while she dragged him.

"Wha-hey!"

 _"A monster, yeah that's what you can call it."_

 _Boom!  
_

Red sludge burst out of the warehouse, consuming it completely. The group at the docks took that as their cue to start running, with Yang carrying Ruby princess style as they made a mad dash towards the exit.

 _"Thing is… I'm not sure just three Strawhats is enough."_

 **Chapter End.**

 **So what do you think? Bet you didn't see SMILEY of all things coming. So yeah, Vol.1 is ending a lot different. I figured I'd give Sun a little bit of a fight scene so I can experiment with his fighting style. He has two awesome weapons that I feel I could do a better job describing, but I can always edit. I have a pretty decent plan for most of the characters in terms of power progression now (Including Ruby) so that's fun. Speaking of Ruby, yeah she got bodied. However she has no Armament Haki yet, that's kind of why I did it. Everyone needs that wake up call, Weiss will get hers soon enough don't worry. Anyway what do you guys think of how I have Torchwick fight? I had fun with it.**

 **Yeah Jaune didn't appear much this time, don't worry he'll be back for the finale. And Oz will finally make his appearance.**

 **Speaking of Ozpin, congrats to Chronosign for being the first one to guess who he was. I'll PM him as well but the prize was gonna be to make an OC for Vytal. However, in our conversation he requested a certain character to be reincarnated and I feel it'd be right to make that the prize. And no, I'm not naming either character until the time of their reveal comes.**

 **I was going to put an Omake with this one, however I feel like it would be better suited for the next chapter as it is the Vol.1 finale.**

 **Lastly, thank you to everyone who stayed following and reviewing since day 1, and the people who found this story when I wasn't writing. The fact that at least 300 people enjoy the shit I put out, I mean to some stories it's small, but damn that's still 300 more people than my first story got. Point is, I'm back. Work will be slow. I'm back in college and I'm still working this soul sucking job. Plus I need time to unwind away from a screen.**

 **Anyway enough of the sappy shit. Next time we finish up Vol.1 with a SMILEY fight in Vale.**

 **As always, leave a review follow and favorite.**

 **Peace!**


	10. Chapter 10

**I was going to release this chapter earlier in the month, but then I realized that there's Christmas. So here's my gift to you all. I hope you enjoy. Merry Christmas from your local Jewish Santa.**

 **What I wanted to do with the first Volume was introduce an enemy who wouldn't kill the protagonists, but easily overpower them and shake them. Johnathan created Yang's one sided rivalry with Jaune, as well as her friendly rivalry with Pyrrha. Ren sought his own training and begun to learn the 6 Powers from Headmaster Ozpin. I also wanted to establish a different world, which I hope I did by Adam wielding Sandai Kitetsu and Roman being Nami's descendent, among other things.**

 **As for Weiss, Ruby, and Nora? Well 2 I have big plans for. Silver Eyes are involved for Ruby, but I want to learn more about her semblance this Volume before making decisions on her. According to the one girl, it's unlike any speed semblance she's seen so I dunno.**

 **Speaking of Ozpin, shout out to Chronosign who got it. I did give him a hint, however I'd like to think that the only real pieces of information I ever dropped were: He was a marine, he had no Devil Fruit in canon, and he was IN One Piece's stupid large cast. Anyway Chronosign did not request an OC but a pre existing character. Truthfully, I meant for an OC to make Vytal more personal for you guys. However, the character he suggested gave me an interesting idea.**

 **Anyway, let's get to it. Sorry for going off again.**

Before she could even truly identify the threat it was too late. Blake knew this, yet she still raised her sword, and plethora of limbs, against the monstrous enemy. She was tired, all her allies were. It wasn't enough to fight a terrorist cell and possibly the most dangerous thief in existence. _No,_ the White Fang had that Goda forsaken monster that they thought to have killed on Punk Hazard.

It started small, as it did the first time. However it quickly began to _consume_. Once that gelatinous beast consumed the crate it was contained in it had begun to increase in size and mass exponentially. Within minutes the once remains of the artificial devil fruit were now revived at full strength.

Thankfully with Ruby out of action, the team deferred to Blake's decision making in the face of this enemy. Which in this case, was to run like hell.

"We're all good, Weiss just crossed." Sun's voice broke Blake out of her musing and with a sigh of relief uncrossed her arms. Immediately the bridge of limbs that had carried their group from the docks to the rooftops began to fall and disintegrate into rose petals.

She took another moment to stare at the monstrosity attacking Vale's docks. Was it her imagination or was it larger than before? The corrosive gasses that made up the beast seemed to coalesce into some sort of fiery colored gelatinous form of a body. While she could recognize the shape as vaguely lizard-like, her mind could hardly relate the _thing_ before her to any living being. Globs of caustic goop dripped from its jowls as the beast anxiously looked around the city, confused by its surroundings. Though Blake wondered how it even saw things, with those blank lifeless white eyes.

However when those eyes settled on the rooftop team RWBY, and Sun, had taken she knew she wasn't the only one who remembered. SMILEY let out an ear shattering roar before twisting its body so it was fully facing Blake. The Faunus watched in idle horror as the crates and metal that it moved over began to rust and corrode.

"How do we stop this thing?" Yang asked after setting Ruby down. Ember Celica was already active and her eyes glowed with a blazing fury.

"I've never seen a Grimm that looked like this." Weiss gaped, staring at the destructive power that SMILEY wielded.

"It's not a Grimm." Blake's words caught everyone's attention. They turned to the cat Faunus, who was still staring towards the dock with a look of deep contemplation on her face. "It's much worse. And as it stands, the only one of us who _can_ stop it is Weiss." Blake sighed. "I've expended my Armament to its limit, even then I'm not sure how long those limbs would hold it down. Her semblance may be able to push it into the water. If not…" Blake shook her head. "Then I'm sorry, Vale may be lost."

"So you just want us to run?" Yang asked, incredulously, "Sure go ahead. Keep running, Blake." The blonde said sarcastically. "Keep running while our home gets destroyed."

"What else can we do?" Weiss's voice was so low that Blake felt she would be straining to hear if not for her Faunus hearing. "As confident as I am in my skill, I do not feel up to facing that _thing,"_ Weiss shuddered as she looked at Caesar Clown's creation. "Alone." Weiss clarified. She was a Schnee after all. I'm sure our teammate has a plan, otherwise she wouldn't have us run." Weiss then turned to look at Blake. "You, do have a plan correct? Because I definitely do not want to die as a freshman. Imagine the stain on my family name."

That got a chuckle out of Blake, "Your father's done enough to stain it. I'm sure you'd be fine." Blake turned to address the assembled group, "We need to find Franky and Jaune. I seem to remember fire working well on this creature."

" _And_ the pervert?" Weiss bemoaned, scrunching up her nose. "He seems like a total buffoon and he's not even a huntsman, how do you even know him? _Why_ do you know him? And for that matter how do you know Jaune so well?"

Blake laughed again, though this time it sounded… different. "Dereshishishi I suppose we were brought together by fate… or rather," Images of a smiling boy flashed through her mind. His strength in the face of the world bearing down on him, and his absolute refusal to let a friend go. Her gaze then trailed to Ruby, the girl who had rushed headlong into a fight with Roman Torchwick for her. A girl who laughed in the face of death, and fought tooth and nail for her beliefs. "By the will of something more powerful than fate, the Will of D."

—

The last ten minutes had been a whirlwind of emotion for Pyrrha. Not only was she carrying her bloodied leader away from a fight far more brutal than the one with Johnathan; she just had multiple bombshells dropped on her. The first, and admittedly least shocking facts being Penny and Franky's robotic origins. Once Pyrrha had gotten over that, the next question came.

"Jaune, how do you know Blake?" Pyrrha blurted suddenly, stopping in the middle of the road they were walking on. Luckily with the White Fang attack nobody was keen on driving at this time. Franky turned to look at the redhead and her passenger as well, his expression a mix of annoyance and curiosity.

"Pyrrha…" Jaune's voice was hoarse and she could feel his grip on her shoulder tighten. "No…I hid my past once before and it's what got me killed." He laughed, though it had no humor in it. Pyrrha looked to Franky who nodded and the two set their charges down to rest while Jaune explained. The blonde sighed, "Shitty bull… Scorched the rest of my cigs." He gave a dry laugh at that. "Alright, Franky how much you remember after the Aqua Laguna?" Jaune asked his one time friend.

The blue haired cyborg scratched his chin in thought, "Not much. I think I fell in. Next thing I know, I'm nowhere near Water 7 and being repaired by old man P."

"Just checking… Guess I gotta start from the beginning." Jaune sighed, leaning back against the wall Pyrrha had set him down by. The redhead and blue haired cyborg stared at him with rapt attention. "There once was a man named Gol D. Roger. The King of the Pirates. The most free man to ever live. The only man to ever reach Raftel, the final island of the Grand Line, the most dangerous sea."

"What are we? 5? Everyone knows that. Get on with it!" Franky groused.

"I don't know either of those names." Pyrrha commented, raising her hand as she spoke.

"See shithead? Pyrrha-swan doesn't know. It's called backstory, dispshit." Jaune snapped at the amnesiac Straw Hat. Pyrrha let out a soft laugh at Jaune's outburst. Even beaten to near death he never changed. Always the white knight.

After calming himself Jaune began to speak again. "He left his treasure on the final island, and said that whoever found it…"

 _"WHOEVER FINDS MY TREASURE WILL BE THE NEXT KING OF THE PIRATES!"_

"They'd take his throne." Jaune said with a grimace. Memories of men, monsters in human skin flashed through his mind. All of them striving for the throne. "Many died, most thought it was hopeless." An image of a Straw Hat wearing boy appeared before him. "Not my captain. Not Luffy. That kid… he ran headfirst into everything, dragging all of us along with him."

Memories of their days on the Merry, fighting with Zoro, cooking for Nami and Robin, even drop kicking Luffy for stealing snacks. "Through the good…" Images of a crying woman, pleading them to stand down against the might of the world, "The bad…" Jaune grimaced at the thought of Duval. "And the _ungodly_ levels of ugly. Luffy carried us through." Though he didn't notice it, off to the side Franky gained a faraway look in his eyes. As if the words were connecting with his soul, underneath all of the metal and upgrades.

"Wait Jaune how could you be a pirate?" Pyrrha asked, stopping the blonde and causing the conscious members of the group to turn their attention to her. "Your father said you ran away from home."

"It was a while ago." Jaune chuckled, tilting his head back so he could stare at the night sky. It was clear, allowing him to see the broken moon in all its glory. "I guess you could say it was lifetime ago." Pyrrha's eyes widened and she opened her mouth to ask another question, however Jaune silenced that by shaking his head.

"I don't know what happened, all I know is I died so he and the others could live. Next thing I know I can't form words and my dad isn't a douchebag assassin warlord. Just a douche." Neither reacted to his joke, to engrossed in the revelation of his reincarnation.

"Jaune… Who are you?" Pyrrha asked, her expression a mask of shock. Who was the man before her? Was he Jaune? Her leader and friend. Or a pirate? None of it made sense.

And yet it did. The way he fought, he used no weapon nor Aura yet he was stronger than most of them in initiation. His knowledge of a long dead power and startling proficiency with it in his "first" time using it against his father. His friendship with Blake, no it went deeper than that. They were more of a family than Jaune was with the Arcs. The more Pyrrha thought about it, the harder it was for her to refute the fact that Jaune may not be Jaune Arc. Maybe he never was.

"Franky here said it perfectly earlier." Jaune said with a smirk, "I'm the chef of the Straw Hat Pirates. 'Black Leg' Sanji." His smirk then turned to a warm smile as he looked Pyrrha directly in the eye. "And I'm also Jaune Arc, leader of Team JNPR." Jaune's expression hardened as his gaze focused on the docks. "And I have an archeologist to save. I'm coming Robin-chwan! Oof!" However as he tried to stand he fell over groaning.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha cried out, rushing over to grab her leader before he hit the ground. She sighed once she caught him, "You can't push yourself like this." She chided him softly, causing him to chuckle.

"Heh if I fall, then I got you and the others to pick up the slack." Jaune said before grimacing, "Normally. This time though, it might be a little out of your league." He said with another hesitant look towards the docks. "Shit, I don't think I'd even be able to walk there. Let alone help Blake." He sighed, "Franky?"

"I gotta get my sis to safety first." Franky said, jabbing his thumb towards where he let Penny and Ren down. "After that, I'll think about it. You still owe me an explanation for Ro-"

"Another time you shitwright!" Jaune snapped at his former brother in arms.

"What was that you god damn smokestack?" Franky roared right back, getting directly in Jaune's face with a terrifying expression due to his slightly revealed mechanical skeleton.

"Boys!" Pyrrha didn't quite yell, no. But her voice commanded authority, cowing the male members of the group long enough for the amazonian redhead to speak. "Franky, just take Ren with you. We have a Bullhead parked at Garp Station. Tell Nora to get to the docks when you get there. She'll need a direction for her…" Pyrrha shuddered as she uttered her next words, "Nora Rage."

The android contemplated the offer for a moment before nodding and scooping up the two injured members of the group. He took one last look back at Jaune, "Try to get out of this, eh? You still owe me. I'll drag you outta hell if I have to."

"Don't count me out just yet. Get the hell outta here you bucket of bolts." Jaune said, turning his head away to hide his smirk. Same old Franky, no amount of cybernetics could change that.

The android simply laughed, the rumble of his chest jostling Ren enough to groan. With a sheepish look Franky set off to get their allies some medical help after their ordeal.

"Pyrrha," Jaune said, calling her attention to him. He didn't want to say it while Franky was here. As much as he wanted to act otherwise, the android had a big heart. If his friends, his allies needed him to he would have gone to the docks. But his duty to his family, their new families, it came first. They couldn't lose again.

"I can't fight… Not right now." He sighed looking down at his legs, "We have to get to Jeff's apartment. I have something there that can bring me back to full strength."

"What? Jaune now's hardly the time to eat." Pyrrha chided her leader, now losing a little faith in the reincarnate.

"If we don't… We can all die." Jaune sighed, "One of Kambakka Kingdom's 99 Attack Cuisines. I wrote down the recipe in case I ever needed to pass it on. If I eat it I'll be back to full strength and we can kick that shitty _thing_ 's ass back to Punk Hazard." Jaune said with a determined look before sweatdropping, "Or we die," He said as an afterthought. "But I like my plan better."

"Ok," Pyrrha said, unsure of how this would heal him, however she would trust Jaune at least for now. He didn't have to let her in. He could have kept lying to her. And it hurt that he felt he couldn't tell her at the beginning. However, Pyrrha understood. His whole life he hid

With a grunt of exertion she hoisted Jaune back over her shoulder and began their trek anew, now heading towards his 'mentor's' house.

—

Nora could have swore she heard someone whisper free pancakes in the apocalypse. Or maybe that was the voices again? Oh right what was she doing again? Right, waiting for the rest of her team to come back with Blake.

The normally bubbly girl's expression saddened when she looked at her scroll and saw the aura gauge for Jaune and Ren.

They had gotten into another fight, one just as tough as Johnathan. As much as Nora tried to hide it, tried to act like nothing affected her, it did. Ren, he protected her once. And now that she was strong enough she…

No, Nora thought. She couldn't think like that. Ren would make it. He had to. And she would _destroy_ whoever dared to hurt a pink hair on his little Ren head.

For some reason her scroll started beeping, and after a little debate she tapped on the screen. Instantly the screen changed from her team's aura meters to a map of Vale with 4 markers on it. The red and the yellow one were moving away from her and closer to the nice restaurant Jaune took them to. Those were probably Jaune and Pyrrha. The one pink marker, that was her, duh. And the last one, the forest green one, it was moving towards her. Actually it was rounding the corner just-

"Oh thank Goda!" Nora looked up from her scroll to see a blue haired guy in a speedo carrying Ren over his shoulder, along with some girl with _awesome_ hair.

"Let go of my Ren you pervert!" And of course Nora reacted as Nora was naturally to do, by pulling out Magnhild and changing it into grenade launcher form. A manic look entered her eye, "I swear if you do any-"

"Easy girl, chef boy sent me!" Franky exclaimed, waving his hands frantically in front of him. Sadly, for his charges he forgot that he still had them firmly in his grasp.

"Big bro please stop sha-a-aking me." Penny weakly moaned, Ren's subsequent gurgle was his form of agreeing.

"Oh uh, sorry." Franky said with a sheepish grin before gently, or rather as gently as possible for him, placed Ren on the ground and moved Penny so he was carrying her princess style. "Look I can call him to prove it if you want."

"That would be _swell_." Nora said in an all too sweet tone. Franky sweat dropped, and took a step away from the maniacal girl with a grenade launcher. He then placed Penny on the ground as well, before producing a scroll from… somewhere. For our sanity, including Nora's, don't ask.

"Yo che-"

"Franky I swear you better have gotten Ren and Penny-swan to the Bullhead or I'll turn you into scraps." Jaune's yelling was so loud Nora could hear it from where she stood, and Franky didn't have him on speaker either, that was impressive.

"Yeah well, call off your attack ginger so we can get on." Franky shot back, after making sure he could still hear.

"What? Nora?" Jaune asked over the scroll, guess that was her queue to come over.

"Yep!" The peppy hammer girl said with a bright grin. "Good to see you're alive Jaune! Well not see, but hear. Is it the same thing? Ah you know what I mean."

"Good to hear from you too Nora." Jaune chuckled, "Now would you mind letting Franky drop off our friends? We need all the firepower we can get, that means you too." Nora's expression turned serious at that. Guess she would be able to get some revenge for Ren.

"Aye aye captain!"

There was a pause. "I could never live up to that title." Jaune's voice was somber, and Nora had no idea why. Though Franky could take a wild guess. "Franky, thanks."

That got the android's attention. "Eh, for what? You think carrying your friend was any trouble? Bitch I'm _SUPER!_ I could go 5 rounds with whatever's attacking the docks and _still_ have juice to mess with Ice for brains!" The android screamed indignantly, shaking the scroll back and forth in his hands as he ranted at Jaune.

"Glad to hear it, see you there. _Kachap._ " And with that Jaune hung up.

"You son of a…" Franky fumed. "Did he just trick me into…? Ah I can't be mad, hell." A grin crossed his face just then, "I can't explain it, but I'm feeling a little nostalgic. Come on grenade girl! Let's blow shit up! SUPER!" Franky yelled, striking his signature pose. A pose… in which Nora couldn't help but to imitate.

And with that the greatest, though if you asked Ren it was actually the most terrifying, friendship was born.

"You got it pervert!"

"I'm not a pervert yow!" Franky hollered back at her. The android shook his head as he picked up his charges and brought them to the bullhead. "Crazy girl… Something about the red hair makes that make sense." He muttered to himself.

—

Meanwhile down at the docks, Blake and the others were not faring well. As it was, Blake was the only one who could physically touch SMILEY due to its corrosive nature. Yang was completely impotent at this distance, not that Blake wanted to risk allowing her to close in on SMILEY. Weiss and Sun were at least able to take pot shots at it with the heiress's Dust arsenal. However their attacks were not even close to effective on the massive figure of SMILEY.

The rooftops provided great cover, and an easy place to guard Ruby.

"We're on a highway to fucking nowhere." Yang grumbled from her position beside her sister. Blake's sensitive ears twitched at the sound of her partner's grousing.

"I have an idea." Weiss and Sun looked at the cat Faunus expectantly. "Weiss, hand me some Dust."

"Which element?"

"Doesn't matter." Blake's tone was assertive, yet not too harsh. At times like this, she supposed she showed her true age… As one who had lived a full life once on the Grand Line. The former pirate in question caught the crystals without batting an eye.

This would take focus, and in her eyes would more than likely blow up in her face. The idea had crossed her mind in the past, though now it seemed slightly possibly. However… Luffy had taken more insane odds on for her. She could do something as trivial as this for her team.

With a look of deep concentration on her face, Blake raised her arms and crossed them. "Cien Fleur!" Blake called out, a mass of flower petals began to rise up beneath SMILEY, giving the creature pause. With a smirk on her face, Blake uttered her next words. "Big Tree!" Those flower petals then began to rise and take the shape of hundreds of arms that formed together into a massive fitted hand. The arms moved so their construct snaked around, allowing the mitten part of the construct to grab SMILEY by its neck.

"Uh Blake, we already-"

"Wait." She said, the smirk never leaving her face. In fact, it only widened once the construct caught fire, still wrapped firmly around SMILEY's neck. "Burning Bonsai." She said, a serene smile now on her face. The former Straw Hat archeologists arms never uncrossed, she refused; not until she was sure the beast was dead and her friends were safe.

"What did you do? I didn't know you could use dust with your power." Weiss asked.

"Not with my Devil Fruit. My Semblance though? My clones, and by extension the clones of my arms can take on the element of whatever Dust I'm using." Blake chuckled, turning around to show her arms to her team. Arms which were now littered with light burns. "I had used my cloning semblance on just the arms. Apparently there's actually a limit to what damage my Devil Fruit can mitigate." Blake then let out a grunt of pain, turning her head over her shoulder to see SMILEY writhing and screaming in pain.

"Kill it already! For Monty's sake it's destroying your arms!" Weiss screamed at her opposite themed teammate.

"No!" Blake's screamed back, whether it was to be heard over SMILEY or in pain she would never tell. "I can't-" A deep rumbling sound cut her off. "No." She muttered, letting her arms drop.

However, like with Aokiji discovering his morals, it was too late.

In a shower of goo, SMILEY had split apart to avoid further damage. Blake quickly crossed her damaged arms and was barely able to bring up a tightly woven net of arms to shield them from the rain of slime.

Under the dome, Blake was panting, her arms crossed and her body wracked with sweat. "Mils Fleur: Spider Web." She muttered, before passing out. In the next instant two things happened. Their shield of interwoven limbs had faded into flower petals, and the small gelatinous monsters that now inhabited the rooftops had their gaze firmly on them.

Yang, now within range of the monsters grinned. "Finally, I was getting bored!" She said in a show of bravado. Though truthfully even she was a little fearful. They had two fighters down, two people to defend. And only three people who were able to fight… And an army of monsters they could only hardly touch was surrounding them. With a metallic click, Ember Celica expanded to full form. "This'll be fun!" The busty brawler cackled as she leapt at the nearest SMILEY and let loose a punch a couple of feet away from hit. Her gauntlet fired a blast of fire, courtesy of the fire dust rounds she had loaded, and propelled by the superhuman force of her punch it actually knocked the gel monster away. "Hey monkey boy," She called out to Sun, "Move Blake closer to Ruby. We'll form a perimeter around them." The Faunus boy nodded and clapped his hands together, creating a hard light construct of himself to fight off the miniature SMILEY while he moved Blake. Weiss got the idea and also moved back. Her Glyphs, while effective in slowing them down were not as powerful as her Dust. Which she was steadily running out of.

"Don't let them get to our teammates!" Weiss said defiantly, pointing her rapier at the horde. The chamber began to spin, and glyphs soon started to cover the ground. With a flick of her wrist on her free hand, the Glyphs turned to black and the slimy monsters unfortunate enough to be caught in her trap found themselves immobile. She then notched her arm back, the chamber in the blade now spinning wildly fast. "This is the last of my family's special blend ice Dust. Now die!" She cried out, thrusting Myrtenaster forward. The chamber began to glow brightly and a spiral of cold winds released itself from the tip of the rapier. Ice formed rapidly on the slimey Devil Fruit creations.

Out of breath, Weiss lowered her arm while smirking and admiring her work. She almost lashed out at the sudden contact on her shoulder, however noticed it was a calloused hand and relaxed… slightly.

"Let me show you how we do in Vacuo!" Sun said with a wide grin, clapping his palms together and creating 3 of his light construct clones. "Get em' boys!" He said, though his clones were already acting. Each leapt at an individual SMILEY that Weiss had frozen with their staff constructs ready to smash them. Having their bodies frozen made it much easier for physical damage to work, Sun quickly found out. "Oh yeah I can do this all day!"

"You said it monkey boy!" Yang hollered from her side of their perimeter, the brawler was steadily blasting away at the monsters with her fire Dust rounds. They were doing damage, however the fact that she couldn't get too close limited her options. Not to mention she was steadily running out of ammunition.

Unlike the others, she hadn't attempted to fire on SMILEY in its massive form, so she still had a good portion of her ammo. Or did until the smaller ones were within range.

A low rumbling sound caught their attention, and the Weiss went to look over the edge. "Uh oh."

"Uh oh? What's uh oh? Uh oh's never good!" Sun cried out as he backflipped away from one of the gelatinous lizards that got too close.

Yang who now had some breathing room, took the time to peer over the edge of the building herself. "Uh oh." She groaned, and what caused that reaction in the W and Y of RWBY? The fact that there was a group of SMILEY at the base of the building attempting to eat through it. And it looked like they had just breached the wall.

Within seconds the rumbling returned, this time more apparent.

"We're going down!"

"Get Ruby and Blake!"

—

 _Tap tap tap_

The steady sound of a cane tapping against the sidewalk filled the alleyway. In the light of the shattered moon, the man's silver hair shone and his glasses glinted off of the light.

"Luffy… What would you do here?" The man sighed to himself, shaking his head. He stopped to gaze up at the moon through the cracks in the buildings. How long had it been since he had seen it whole?

His senses alerted him to a presence in the shadows, and with expert precision stabbed his obsidian colored cane through the gelatinous monster that jumped at him. "You're not truly alive… So I don't have to feel bad about this." He muttered, twisting his cane, and the monster's body. It let out one final scream before bursting. "Disgusting." The man said, flicking his obsidian colored arm of the goo, before letting his Armament Haki fade.

Ozpin then stepped out onto the street, he was near his destination. He looked across the street at the Dust Shop, and then into the window of the building he was next to. Tables lined the inside, however it was clearly vacant in light of the recent monster attack. Gold Leaf, correction he was closer than he thought.

His voice was faint, however Ozpin could still hear the voice of the one he was looking for. With a small application of Moonwalk he was able to ascend to the rooftop of the building. And with a single finger pistol the locked door on the roof was blown inward towards the wall, landing with a loud _clang_. Ozpin then kept walking down the stairs, his cane tapping all the way. The apartment he was looking for was close, only two floors down. The 4th floor. He supposed he would enjoy the walk. After all it was important to enjoy the simple things in one's long life.

Once he reached his destination he wasted no time in using finger pistol again, this time only on the lock. He heard the sound of a gun cocking on the other side of the door, and readied his Armament Haki across his chest and arms. With a push he opened the door and-

 _bang!  
_

That was going to sting.

"Professor Ozpin? Oh my Oum I'm so sorry!"

Why did he feel like team JNPR was going to be just as much, if not more of a headache than RWBY.

—

Pyrrha decided, if they survived this mess, she was taking a day off. Seriously she had to drag her near insensate leader through Vale, while also ducking these strange slime monsters. In his half awake state Jaune warned her not to get close to the mask-less Grimm, she decided to take that advice.

Getting him up the stairs? That was another challenge. He didn't look like it, but damn he was kind of heavy. She had to rouse him from his slumber once they got there to open the door. Jaune simply groaned and reached under the doormat. He then slid his arm out from underneath, key in hand.

Pyrrha had nearly rolled her eyes at that, but to give her leader credit he was half dead after his last fight. Franky, for all the damage he took, was an android and was able to move around fine. If this miracle cure of Jaune's didn't work, then she didn't know what they would do.

After unlocking the door and dragging Jaune inside, she was greeted with a shotgun cocked in her face. Standing before her was a stout man with a beer belly and a bushy black mustache. His face was marked with light scars and wrinkles, showing his age. Over his clothes he wore a white chef's apron.

His gaze was quickly drawn to the young man slung over her shoulder, he lowered the gun though his glare never lessened. "Get in." He said, his voice gruff. After dragging Jaune in and sitting him on the couch, the man closed the door and locked it again. He looked at the pair for a good long while, staring at them in silence. "So you're the girl Jaune left my restaurant for? Guess I shouldn't be surprised with the little shit." He said, breaking the silence with his booming laughter.

"Wait that means-" Pyrrha's eyes widened.

"Aye, Jeff Holchis at your service." He said, placing the shotgun down by the side of the couch, before giving Pyrrha a lazy salute. "And you're Pyrrha Nikos, ain't yeh lass?"

"That's right."

"Hm, th'boy's got some luck that's for sure. S'pose that's the universe making up for his past." Jeff sighed.

"You knew?"

"He didn't tell me if that's what yer askin'." Jeff grunted, walking over to the wall closest to the kitchen and leaning against it. "But those eyebrows, well I had my suspicions. Not to mention the kid could fight, and cook better than anyone I've seen in years. That kind of talent from a country bumpkin? Not likely." Jeff said. "So why have you come to my humble abode? I doubt that stupid Eggplant wants to sit out of the fight."

"Jaune said he had something here, a recipe for something that could heal him." Pyrrha tried to explain.

"Impossible, nothing like that exists. Not on Sanus." The aged chef grumbled the last bit

"He said it was called Attack Cuisine." Jeff's eyes widened and his expression morphed into one of shock.

"What?" The man asked.

"You heard her… Shitty old man." Jaune weakly groaned from the couch. The other two inhabitants of the room turned their attention to him.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha cried out in relief, wrapping him in a hug.

"If this is what happens when I'm injured maybe I should get hurt more often." Jaune muttered to himself, grinning. Though Pyrrha heard him and quickly got off of him, her face as red as her hair. The young blonde then turned his attention to Jeff. "Hey old man."

"Eggplant." Jeff nodded at him. "Do you really know how to make it?" His voice was completely serious. The joking air around Jaune seemed to evaporate, as a serious expression that truly showed his age crossed his face.

"Yeah… All of them." Jaune sighed. He winced as he shifted his body, the injuries still a bit much for him to move around with.

"Shit, kid. You look like you can barely drink a cup of soup, let alone make one of _those_ legendary recipes." Jeff scoffed.

"Shitty old man… Wouldn't be talking so much if I weren't injured." Jaune grumbled. "I kind of counted on you being here. You'd never leave your restaurant, or the people here behind."

"Nah, I'm just a grouchy old man who hates moving." Jeff said turning away from them. "So what's your plan? Have me cook the Attack Cuisine for you?" He chuckled before turning back to face Jaune. "And what says I'll do it?"

"What?" Pyrrha asked, shocked.

"Hey Pyrrha-swan I think that shitty bull rung my bell too hard. You mind getting him to repeat that?" Jaune asked the redhead by his side.

"I said it once, I'll say it again." Jeff grunted. "If, and it's a big if, If I make it and you go back out there… You'll just get hurt again." He sighed, "I promised yer old man I wouldn't let'cha get into danger… Much. Him roughing you up not withstanding."

"How did-"

"Old people talk, Eggplant. You think none of us can use Scrolls? Hell most of us in the old guard were using th' first generation of them." Jeff said, laughing at his charge's expense.

"Fair point." Jaune conceded. However his swirl tipped brows furrowed, "But… I can't abandon my friends. I must go, my people they need me!" Jaune said, slurring slightly.

"You can't even stand! And people? You and the girl are here. I'm sure whoever's out there can handle it." Jeff shouted at Jaune before huffing and crossing his arms.

"That may be…" Jaune said, his voice was low. "But what kind of man would I be if I left those ladies to face that _thing_ alone."

Jeff paused, walking towards the kitchen quietly. "You won't let this go, hm? Somethin' tells me if I didn't help you you'd crawl your way there."

"Tch, you know me too well." Jaune chuckled.

"Fine, but on one condition." Jeff said, now standing over Jaune and glaring down at him. Even with his short stature he had an imposing gaze. "Come work part time on the weekends. I need a good sous-chef. Got that, Eggplant?"

"Work it out with Ozpin after I save everyone." Jaune grumbled, though he had a smile on his face.

"Then let's get to," The sound of the lock being punched through stopped the conversation. Pyrrha, who was closest to her weapons, set her shield down on the ground and kneeled behind it. She then transformed her Xiphos into rifle form and aimed it at the door. The second the door opened, she didn't hesitate in letting off a shot.

Though, after seeing who she shot, maybe she should have. "Professor Ozpin? Oh my Oum I'm so sorry!" She screamed. Though her panic quickly faded into shock, once the bullet crumpled harmlessly off of his chest. "Why am I not surprised?" She muttered.

"Guess I'll get to ask him sooner than I thought." Jeff said, smirking at Jaune.

"It does seem like you're surrounded with powerful people now, it must feel comfortable being with people on your level, Ms. Nikos." Ozpin said, his tone pleasant.

Though his words struck Pyrrha. Ren was training in using a strange fighting style, Yang was adapting to her semblance, and she was nowhere near Jaune or Blake's level without access to Haki. To Pyrrha it was less comforting that the others were catching up. No the thought that entered her mind was fear of being left behind.

"Yes, I suppose it is." She said with a pleasant smile, never letting her emotions crack through her shield.

"What are you doing here Ozpin?" Jaune grunted.

"I came to help." He said, as if it were obvious.

"You want to tell the truth?" Jaune asked.

"We don't have time for the whole story." Ozpin sighed, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a faded green piece of cloth. If one looked closely at the worn fabric they could faintly see a flower print design throughout it. "Does this help ring any bells?"

"… You were from Newkama Island?" Jaune asked, dread filling his voice and face.

"What-no!" Ozpin sputtered, nearly tripping over himself before pushing his glasses back into place. "Ahem, no. I was a Marine actually." He saw Jaune tense up before he raised his hand. "We met once actually. On Water 7 actually."

"Water 7…" Jaune muttered. He vaguely remembered his time there, well the time not spent saving Robin. That kind of took up a good majority of his stay there, that and recovering from Enies Lobby. He didn't remember any Marines who looked like Ozpin though. "Are you the fedora guy?"

"No, I'm Coby! Coby! How does everyone always forget about me." He grumbled to himself.

"Coby? Wait…" The name was ringing bells… And that cloth, it was… Wait didn't he have pink hair. "You're that dumb glasses kid who followed Luffy's scary ass grandpa!" Jaune cried out, jolting his arm up and pointing an accusatory finger at Ozpin. The headmaster simply stood there with a blank look on his face.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha scolded her partner, before pausing. "Wait he was younger than you?"

"Yeah, now that I think about it Luffy said he was a total shrimp when they met." Jaune snickered. "Looks like time did you some good."

"Thank you Mr. Vinsmoke." Ozpin said, his tone still pleasant. However that shut Jaune up good. "I'll keep this brief. We do have Caesar Clown's experiment to deal with. In my first life I had eaten the Life Life Fruit. As a base it allows me to control my life force to give me energy, or transfer it to others. And upon death…"

"You transfer to another body… Just like Brook." Jaune said, his eyes wide in realization.

"Correct. However unlike Brook I was reincarnated in a new body, not thrown in my old one." Ozpin explained. "And over time, I learned to reincarnate others who had a strong life force."

"Wait so that means…"

"Yes Jaune," Ozpin smirked. "I'm why you're back. And right now you can either worry about why you, or accept my help and answer questions later." The headmaster of Beacon then held out his palm, which now glowed with a green light. "As I said before I can use my own life force, even give some of it to others. If you take my hand, I should be able to restore you to enough energy to assist team RWBY.

"Well… It does beat my idea." Jaune sighed. "No offense Jeff, it took me months to learn these recipes. The side effects if you mess them up."

"Yeah yeah, don't need to tell me twice." The older chef waved him off. "You just owe me some of those recipes ya'hear?" Jaune merely laughed in response to that before turning his attention back to Ozpin.

"I want those answers when we're done, marine." Jaune said to the white haired man, a fire blazing in his eyes.

"I don't recall you being able to make demands of me, pirate." Ozpin said with a light chuckle. He then placed his palm to Jaune's forehead. The room was then filled with a bright light, before Jaune's wounds were instantly healed.

Ozpin however, was now covered in a light sheen of sweat. "Guess I am getting old in this life." He chuckled weakly.

"It's fine," Jaune said, standing up from the couch slowly. "I'll pick up your slack." He said as he walked towards the door.

"Jaune, wait!" Pyrrha cried out. She then looked at Ozpin. "How are you ok with this?"

"He's one of Luffy's." Ozpin said, giving her a helpless shrug.

"Pyrrha-swan!" Jaune called to her, grabbing the redhead's attention. "C'mon, I need my partner to watch my back."

A smile crossed Pyrrha's face and she nodded. "Right."

"Oi, what about our deal?" Jeff grumbled, though he too had a smirk on his face.

"I'll think about it, you shitty old man." Jaune said, waving over his shoulder before he and Pyrrha exited the apartment.

—

Yang let out a grunt of exertion as she threw some of the rubble away. "Not bad monkey boy, not bad." She said with an appraising smirk, looking at Sun. Who in the fall had activated his semblance and had his 3 light clones crouched around Ruby and Blake, holding up some debris.

"Thanks… Little help?" He said through grit teeth to the other present blonde, who nodded before punching the rubble. On contact, her gauntlet fired a slug and the combined force knocked the debris away, and turned a good portion to dust.

"What happened?" Sun asked, he and Yang now standing with Ruby and Blake's prone forms between them.

"Those slime things ate through the supports. Whole building came down." The female blonde grunted, her eyes flashing red. "Dammit!" She cried out, punching a nearby wall so hard that a portion crumbled away. "How are we supposed to fight these things?"

"I… Don't really have a clue." Sun sighed. "Didn't Blake say your friend could help? Jane, June, something?"

"Jaune." Yang corrected the monkey Faunus. "I don't know where he is right now. Pyrrha was going to look for him. I haven't been able to contact either her or Nora since the Bullhead landed."

"Right… So run like hell?" The monkey Faunus asked, getting an eye roll out of Yang before she pushed away some of the rubble. "Hey! Wait where are you going?" He called after her.

"Finding my teammate." Yang huffed, about to leave.

Sun's smirked. "Go, I'll watch them." He said. A sound of hissing caught their attention and Sun darted into action, moving Blake and Ruby before the slimy mass of a piece of SMILEY descended on them.

"Like hell I'm leaving my sister with such a lame bodyguard." Yang said with a smirk. "Weiss is a big girl."

—

For some reason, Weiss felt the strange need to hurt Yang at that moment. Though she would have to put those thoughts on the back burner for much more pressing issues. Namely the larger SMILEY lizard that had formed to attack her. After separating her from her team, it seemed the monsters had wisened up to her Dust usage. By merging together they were able to resist the elements much easier, and she was already almost out as is.

She cursed herself for allowing herself to be pushed into a corner. Winter would never let her hear the end of it. She closed her eyes, ready for the end… When she felt an intense heat coming from nearby… And then nothing.

When she opened her eyes she was shocked. Standing there with a still smoking leg raised was a man she did not expect to see standing, at least from what his partner told her before they left. His clothes were in tatters, it was a miracle his shoes held together this long. However it was unmistakably him, the blonde hair and swirl tipped eyebrows gave it away.

"Sorry I was late princess." Jaune said with a smirk. "Your knight is here." He said with an exaggerated bow.

"JAUNE YOU BASTARD!" Weiss screamed. "What if your flames hit me?"

"I would never hit a lady, ice princess." Jaune said with a smile. "Even if a little heat would help melt that cold wall around your heart." He said, reverting to his Sanji antics in a love tornado for just a moment.

"Where's Pyrrha?" Weiss asked, "You didn't leave her to save me, did you you idiot?"

"What? No! Pyrrha-swan said to go get you while she went to go find Blake for me." Jaune chuckled nervously. "Damn I wish I had a cig right now. Yeah it's going to take the three of us." He chuckled.

"Blake said you two fought this thing in the past." Weiss said. Jaune turned to her, shocked. "I don't know much, really nothing at all. I can hear it from my teammate when we get out of this. I need to know, can you kill this stupid thing?"

"We need it to go big again." Jaune explained. "If it's using its full body then we can knock it in the ocean and kill it."

"Just like that?" Weiss asked, shocked. "It's weak to water of all things?"

"It's a… shit Chopper knew what it was called." Jaune muttered. "Some sort of fake Devil Fruit. Point is, it's got the same weakness all the shitty fruits have." He sighed, "Only problem is, if we do it with just the small bodies then the whole thing'll start all over again."

"Do you have a plan?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah, just going to need to make a call." Jaune said, "Uh can I borrow your scroll?" He chuckled sheepishly. "I left mine at my mentor's place when I was bleeding everywhere."

—

Never again would Yang be stingy and buy regular rounds over Dust. This shit was ridiculous. Her attacks were practically ineffective, mostly because she couldn't make contact or burn her enemies anymore. Luckily Sun's Semblance provided a decent buffer between the slimy monsters and their downed charged.

They had cleared the gotten rid of the SMILEY that ambushed them easily enough. However now Yang was out of Dust rounds, and Sun only had lightning Dust which was wholly ineffective against the artificial monsters. His clones, while they were able to touch the monsters were quick to fall to their poison, and his Aura was probably getting dangerously low.

When Yang heard the sound of crunching outside, her heartbeat quickened, not knowing who, or more likely _what_ , was coming.

She let out a sigh of relief when she saw the glimmering Greek armor and red hair.

"Yang!" Pyrrha said with her own sigh of relief, running over to her sparring partner and… loosely her friend. Both were glad to see that the other was alright. "This is getting out of hand." The redhead muttered. "White Fang, and now monsters?"

"Tell me about it." Yang snorted. "Apparently Roman Torchwick can control the weather now, if that wasn't enough." She groused. "You have any fire Dust? I'm all out."

"Sure." Pyrrha was quick to toss a vial of the red powder to Yang. "We can deal with him later, for now we need to survive this."

"Right well, where the hell are the actual Huntsmen?" Yang asked, crossing her arms.

"Most likely they're helping with the evacuation effort." Pyrrha reasoned. "Jaune said he had a plan to kill it though. Do you know where Blake is?"

"Of course he does." Yang snorted. "Not sure how much help she'll be. Her and Ruby were knocked out earlier."

"Then we wake her up." Pyrrha said, brushing past Yang. The blonde of Team RWBY simply shrugged, chuckling to herself.

"You think we haven't tried that?" Yang asked, jogging to catch back up to Pyrrha before the duo rounded the corner. Leaning against a nearby pile of rubble in the hall was Sun, who looked haggard but otherwise unharmed.

The young leader of Team RWBY was lying on the ground, wrapped in her cloak. Blake was propped up against the rubble, closer to Sun. Pyrrha guessed he didn't place her there by coincidence.

"Hey… you…" Sun said, grinning at Pyrrha before his tail drooped and shoulders sagged. "I uh, don't know you right?"

"You might." Pyrrha said, a coy smile on her lips. The guy looked like he was from Mistral for sure, it was almost a _little_ insulting he didn't recognize her. Though, she supposed she was grateful to not be showered with praise for once. "What happened to them?"

"Short stack ate a lightning bolt, and a beating." Sun said, wincing. "Blake, well it's a combination of that… And she shielded us from the goo." Sun frowned, looking down at the girl who's breath was labored; just a short while ago she was defending them all. And yet… he just supported. Cautious not to get too involved. He still had to look out for number one after all, right? Right?

"Will she live?" Pyrrha asked, a worried look on her face.

"She's strong." Yang grunted. "Like hell something as lame as this will kill her. Besides, I still owe her a beating myself. So she can't die yet."

"Should we move them?" Sun asked.

"No," Pyrrha shook her head. "Not yet. If Franky brings the Bullhead then we can bring them to him. If not then we may have to keep holding this area."

"Sounds good to me." Sun said.

"Didn't you come to get Blake though?" Yang asked.

"Hopefully Jaune has a back up plan."

The sound of heavy gunfire shook the building they were in.

"I think that's his back up plan." Sun said, ducking his head out of one of the many holes in the wall to take a look outside.

—

"Super!" Franky laughed a deep boisterous laugh as he struck his signature pose in the open cargo bay of the Bullhead. Currently the aircraft was hovering above the docks, just low enough so that Franky and Nora's shots would be within range. He had to admire his handiwork, those slime monsters were going down super easy to their weaponry.

"Franky you jackass!" Jaune's voice growled at him through Franky's connection to the blonde reincarnate's Scroll. "I told you to sweep the city then come here!"

"Eh? I didn't see any on the way though." Franky muttered, scratching his strangely shaped chin. "You sure you didn't just kill them all?" He asked, before squinting at something in the distance. "Wait… Uh… Jaune."

—

Jaune lowered his scroll, a scowl on his face as he watched the countless small globs of slime drift towards a central point. "I see it." He watched as the slime reformed into the massive creature, this time further from the docks.

The last time they had fought this thing, hell that weird flame samurai from Wano did most of the work. Only this time, they weren't on a damn near unpopulated wasteland. They were in a city. If they let it rampage until it died… Who knew the reprecussions.

"And here I thought we were done with that thing." Weiss groaned, taking a hesitant step away from the beast. Even with all her training she had never expected to fight something like this.

Right as it seemed to finish regenerating its mass, Jaune raised his scroll again. "Light him up." He said simply.

The shout of "Franky Radical Beam!" Could be heard by everyone who was conscious in the docks. And the accompanying massive flash of searing energy was seen by everyone left in Vale.

The beam tore through the sky, cleaving clouds in half within seconds of firing. Not only was the attack powered by near full Cola reserves, but a healthy amount of fire Dust as well.

The beam impacted SMILEY, and through the shining light of the blast they could see SMILEY being pushed back by the beam.

The massive gelatinous lizard screamed in agony, trying to push back against the beam.

"Oh my god." Weiss muttered.

"Hell yeah!" Jaune whooped, "Beat his ass like last time!" He couldn't help but scream his support. After all, what was a crew for?

"Yeah Jaune…" Franky's voice came over the scroll, "You have a back up for your back up? I'm running on fumes here." Jaune turned back to the fight and he could see Franky wasn't kidding. The beam had shrunk slightly in diameter however the glow was much duller.

"Keep pushing." Jaune said into his scroll. He then handed the device back to Weiss. "Thanks, I don't have the best control of this since I just learned it today. So I'd hate to burn your stuff. It would probably cost a fortune."

"You're quite right." She said with a huff, tilting her head. Though she couldn't quite hide the smirk on her face. The antics of Ruby, and by extension the others who she associated with had started to grow on her. Much as she would try to deny it. Weiss paused for a second. "Wait when you say just learned it…" Her eyes widened.

"I'm pretty angry right now Ice Princess." Jaune said suddenly, shocking her. "You might wanna step back…" She complied, and Jaune tilted his head up. The air around him began to shimmer before his entire body was engulfed in flames. His hair rose, two strands then burst into flames and gained the look of devil horns.

In that second Franky's beam finally lost all power.

In that same second Jaune disappeared. The only reminder that he once stood there was the charred ground.

"You idiots…" Weiss said, clutching her hands to her chest. "You better survive."

Her words may not have reached Jaune at that moment due to how fast he was moving. Combining Shave with his already impressive speed let him easily bound over the rubble in his way. With liberal application of Sky Walk he was face to face with the beast.

The blank eyes of Caesar Clown's monster stared back at him. It roared, as if to challenge him.

Jaune reared his leg back in response.

 _A boy wearing a red vest and a straw hat reared his arm back, stretching it further than humanly possible._

His gaze hardened as he neared the beast.

 _The boy's eyes narrowed, black armor stretching across the limb. Flames quickly engulfed the arm in seconds._

"I'll never let _anyone die again!"_ Jaune screamed, slamming his foot into the face of the beast. The first was enough to make it buck back.

 _The boy's fist shot forth and impacted the chest of the monstrous fishman._

"Hell Memories!" Jaune bellowed, flames burst forth as he closed in once more and let out a barrage of kicks. He was relentless, never letting up as he pushed the monster back.

It screamed, tried to swipe at him, however it could not hit the enraged fighter. He was too small, too quick, too powerful.

With one last kick and a roar of rage, Jaune sent the beast tumbling off the docks. "Mutton Shot." He said calmly as the flames around him simmered down. The blonde landed by the edge of the docks, and with an impassive look on his face watched the slime monster sink into the ocean.

It screamed in agony as its body destabilized, and eventually nothing. The beast was dead. Leaving only the wreckage it brought to the city.

"Hope I did you proud, captain." Jaune said to himself, finally allowing a smile to cross his face.

Jaune turned around to gaze at it and frowned. "I really hope they don't blame this on me like they did last time. Geez, I was trying to have a simple life this time." He bemoaned to himself, rubbing his neck.

"Jaune!" He heard someone call his name from above. He looked up and grinned at the Bullhead which was getting ready to land. Standing at the base of the open cargo bay door were his battered, but still conscious friends. Nora, seeing as she hadn't experienced any combat was the freshest of them all and was eagerly waving him over.

Though Pyrrha was standing in the front. Jaune hid a wince. He had put her through some shit, her and the others. He had to make it up to her. Though from the smile on her face, telling her the truth today was getting on the right track.

"Let's go back to Beacon." He said with a grin.

—1—

 **AND THAT'S IT! Volume 1 is officially done. Our heroes prevailed against SMILEY. Just to run over the damages real quick, since it may be a little confusing with all that happened. So in order: Penny was taken out by Adam at the beginning, Ren was also taken out by Adam, Franky while injured was not hurt nearly as bad as the others (better bot, thanks Vegapunk tech!), Jaune was also injured during the fight with Adam however was healed by Ozpin's Life Force. Ruby was hit by a thunderbolt tempo, then beaten by Roman. And Blake was poisoned and will need healing.**

 **Alright onto the meat. I may come back and flesh out certain parts of this chapter. I had fun writing it, especially since I had never written an unintelligent enemy before so SMILEY was a bit of a challenge.**

 **Oh and yeah, it's Coby. I figured I'd throw in a joke about how _nobody_ could guess him first try, and the fact that he was really unimpressive when Sanji last saw him. The main reason I picked him for Oz is that he's somewhat of a blank slate, in terms of what I was looking for. He was a marine student of Garp, may end up as Luffy's rival, no Devil Fruit. This made him the perfect candidate for the Life Life Fruit.**

 **Yes it is a fan made devil fruit. I will explain the mechanics that Ozpin explained, there will be a more in depth explanation next chapter. Ozpin/Coby can use his Devil Fruit to use his Life Force as a weapon to strengthen his attacks, normally seen as a green aura. He can also transfer some of his Life Force to others to heal their injuries, or strengthen them if uninjured. When he dies, as long as he's not submerged in seawater or killed by anything Seastone he will reincarnate. Over time, he learned to reincarnate others as well. As for how he unlocked that ability, find out next time.**

 **Oh and a preview for Vol. 2, just because I love y'all. Happy Chanukah.**

Neo's boots clinked on the dance floor of Junior's club. The venue was silent, and painted with blood. Which was to be expected after, all she was the one who did it. The ice cream themed girls pace didn't change as she walked to the back of the bar and opened the door to the office.

Sitting there in the dimly lit room, tied to a chair was Junior. The man had seen better days for sure. She looked at the men on either side of Junior, both wearing the clothes of his bouncers. They seemed eager to prove their loyalty to their new employer.

They weren't the only ones to switch sides. Violence was a very effective tool in negotiations, especially when one cannot speak.

"Please I-" Junior was quickly silenced by Neo holding up a finger. She then procured a scroll from her purse, dialed a number and pressed speaker.

 _"Junior…"_ Roman's slightly raspy voice came over the scroll.

"Roman what's this about."

 _"It's time the club… Came under new management."_ The line went dead. And Neo stabbed the tip of her parasol blade through Junior's neck. The man didn't even have enough time to scream, only the horrified reaction on his face.

Neo swung her blade to the side, flicking the blood off of it. She then walked out of the office and back to the bar. The mute girl then poured herself a shot, holding the glass in one hand and her scroll in another. She then tapped the screen, taking a selfie and then sending it with the message: _To our victory._

 **AND BAM! The canon is officially broken. Sorry not sorry I killed Junior. Anyway, leave a review if you want.**

 **Your support means a lot guys, seriously. I can't thank you all enough for driving me to produce this shit for you. Life's draining, but knowing my shit makes at least some people happy is a good feeling. Ah I'm rambling, see ya nerds next time.**

 **Vargas out**


	11. Chapter 11

**HAPPY FUCKIN NEW YEAR SPONGE BOY ME BOB IT'S TIME FOR SOME VOLUME 2!**

 **Alright so some basic stuff on what I want out of this Volume. RWBY and JNPR will have diverging plot lines. This will be expanded on later, but Roman ain't the only threat that's for sure. Speaking of Roman, yes he was injured. However, he now owns Junior's club and well, controls the information in Vale. Having a bullshit tier weapon and Haki also helps him keep his edge.**

 **Rewatching Vol.2 has led me to realize that things will diverge much sooner than I thought. Which I was hoping for really.**

 **Speaking of Haki, I'm redoing my explanation of Armament to work with new canon information. My version of Armament is divided into 3 stages not 2.**

 **-The first stage is simply strengthening your attacks a little, it can in some cases injure stronger levels. But the main thing is you can grasp Logia with it.**

 **-Second stage is regular Armament. The obsidian armor and whole deal.**

 **-Third stage is mastered Haki. Note, Johnathan DOES NOT HAVE MASTERED ARMAMENT. Mastered Armament is the level of Armament Luffy was training to unlock in Wano.**

 **I'm not the biggest fan of Vol.7 however I do like Robyn Hill. It has its moments. Penny being brought back? Not one of them. Jaune telling the little kids to lead everyone? Fucking gold. I'll talk on the other thing I liked later, don't wanna**

"H…e…look?" Muffled voices were the first thing she had heard. She could tell she was in a hospital, if only for the insufferably bright light and blurry white shapes. What had happened? Did they win?

She could see three distinctly colored splotches. One black, one yellow and one red with a shock of blue at the top.

"Hey she's waking up!" This time she could clearly tell it was a female speaking. Her vision was clearing as well. She shook her head and rubbed her eyes a bit before reopening them. Standing in front of her she could clearly see her partner, her friend from a past life, and…

"Franky?" She asked, her voice was hoarse and weak.

"Yo." The blue haired android said, giving the girl a lazy salute.

"Easy Blake," Jaune said, walking over to her with a bottle of water. She eagerly accepted it and began to guzzle it down. "Jeez what were you thinking? Weiss-swan told me about what you tried. That's some Luffy grade stupid."

"Didn't…" Blake coughed, though her smirk remained. "Didn't you… Charge Doflamingo headfirst?" She chuckled. "He without sin cast the first stone."

"Agh," Jaune choked on his next words. "That's uh… That's besides the point! Back me up here!"

"I don't know what you two are talking about." Yang said with a shrug.

"This looks like a Strawhat problem." Franky said, looking off to the side while sticking a pinky up his metal nose.

"You're a Strawhat!" Jaune yelled back at him, flames in his eyes. He then coughed, straightened his tie and regained his composure. "Anyway…"

"What happened?" Blake asked.

"Well after your kamikaze attack…" Yang grumbled, "Seriously you go from running away to sacrificing yourself. Make up your mind."

"I'm/she's weird like that." Jaune and Blake answered at the same time, the latter smirking at the former.

"Ugh," Yang groaned, "What am I gonna do with a partner like you. If you make my hair go gray I'm kicking your ass." She said, pointing an accusatory finger at Blake.

"Noted," The cat Faunus chuckled, "So…"

"Right. Well after you passed out we were kind of put on the back foot for a while." Yang explained. "Fire and Ice Dust were the only things that were really effective against that thing. And we were already running low after our scrap with Torchwick." Jaune scowled at the mention of that man, as did Franky. Blake on the other hand went wide eyed.

"Jaune." Blake interrupted, "I have to tell you something about Torchwick later." The blonde raised a swirl tipped eyebrow, but nodded.

"Anyway," Yang said, clearing her throat a little _too_ loudly to just be polite. "Then uh that's when Jaune came in."

"Fought some shithead with a sword. Your ex or something." Jaune snorted. He then reached towards his dress shirt and unbuttoned it, revealing a mass of bandages covering his chest.

"Adam?"

"Yeah," Jaune sighed, "Didn't kill him. He's a tough bastard, and I know he wasn't going all out." The blonde grumbled.

"Don't have to explain that shit to me." Franky grunted in affirmation. "The guy took my best to the face and kept going."

"He wasn't always this way… But I'm afraid he's too lost in his own darkness now." Blake sighed. "Next time, be sure to finish the job." She said, looking away. Not allowing anyone to see the tear forming in the corner of her eye. _"I'm sorry I couldn't save you from yourself."_ She thought before wiping her eyes and turning back to face her friends.

"Yeah anyway after that I was out of commission. Ozpin healed me up, he's got some Devil Fruit."

"Figures." Franky and Blake both said at the same time. Though Yang's response was a little different.

"Devil Fruit?" Yang asked, crossing her arms under her impressive bust. "Yeah Blake you kind of didn't explain anything about where you two knew each other from." Jaune and Blake sent each other a look before looking a Franky… Who shrugged in response.

"It's not exactly our first time walking the mortal coil, Yang." Blake said after some time. She held up a hand to stop Yang from speaking, "I wasn't completely honest with you. When you asked me what my Semblance was, I told you it was to create limbs." A wispy black doppelgänger of Blake appeared next to the hospital bed. Yang's eyes widened in realization once Blake's limb passed through. "My Semblance is to create empty copies I can fill with Dust. However in this life, and the last I ate a Devil Fruit known as the Hana Hana no Mi."

"English?" Yang asked.

"Flower Flower Fruit." Jaune answered. "In our past lives the three of us, well we were pirates." Jaune said with a sheepish grin. Yang seemed to not believe him. "It was a different time. There were no Grimm, just an ocean of dreams…"

"And a World Government the stuff of nightmares." Blake cut in, her voice cold. "When I was 8 in my first life…" Blake paused, her voice breaking. "My island was razed to the ground. Every man, woman, child… Slaughtered. All except me."

"W-why?" Yang asked. The blonde had taken a seat in that time and had her fingers interwoven in front of her face. "Who could do such a thing?"

"Because," Franky spoke up this time. A dry chuckle, one without humor, escaped his lips. "Knowledge is power. And if you've got power and you're not with them… They'd kill ya." He spat, "They did it to old man Tom."

"Those bastards weren't much better than pirates." Jaune spat. "Look the point is. We weren't… Super," He shot a glare at Franky who was getting ready to enter his signature pose. Now was not the time. "Aggressive. We never started fights, we just wanted to sail and accomplish our dreams." Jaune chuckled as he walked over to the windowsill and leaned against it. "That doesn't mean we didn't bust our share of skulls along the way. If you can believe it, more times than not we followed an idiot's stomach… Or if he saw a 'Mystery Island'."

That last bit got a small chuckle out of Yang and Blake. "I don't know whether to believe you or not…" Yang said, shaking her head. "The fact is, a couple of months ago none of this stuff existed to me. It was just punch a Grimm, and done. Now you're telling me there's a level of power humans can use that makes us super strong, fruits that give you super powers, and… The past was some crazy ocean full of oppressive governments and pirates."

"It wasn't all bad." Blake said with a smile. "The friends we made along the journey were worth it."

"Except Mosshead."

"Even Zoro. Don't be rude, Mr. Chef." Blake teased her friend, who scowled at her… For all of three seconds. Let it be known, even in his second life, Sanji could not resist a woman.

"Yes Blake-swan." Jaune sighed.

"I can't blame you for not telling us before." Yang said with a sigh, "But, no more secrets ok?"

"Sure." Blake nodded.

"Anything for you, Yang-chwan!" Jaune's reaction was a little more… vibrant. And by vibrant, of course I mean a class 2 love hurricane.

"Don't lump me in with them." Franky snorted. "I got a smuggling business to run."

"You're one of us shithead!" Jaune hollered as he leapt at Franky, foot reared back to deliver a kick to the android.

Yang merely laughed at the display, as did Blake.

While it wasn't quite the same for the reincarnate as watching Sanji and Zoro trade blows, it was refreshing in a way. In his old body Franky was much slower, which led to the Monster Trio quickly leaving him in the dust. However this new body was able to retain much of BF-38's strength, while giving him the necessary speed to be more than a nuisance to someone on Jaune's level.

"You shithead!" Jaune's foot met metal fist in an intense clash of sparks.

"Dumbass!" Franky shouted with equal intensity.

"BOYS!" The door flew open, nearly knocked off the hinges. Standing in the hallway with an absolutely livid look on her face was Goodwitch, her riding crop out to the side. Her eyes were crystalline green flames, if Jaune wasn't fearing for his life… Well you get the idea.

Both android and chef calmed down after that, giving the physically older woman a sheepish look. Seeing that she successfully cowed the rowdy boys, Goodwitch gave a satisfied huff before entering the room. "Ms. Xiao Long." She said, nodding at Yang who gave a lazy salute and a grin in response. Goodwitch then turned her attention to Blake. "Ms. Belladona. It's good to see that you have returned safely."

"Safe…" Blake chuckled dryly. She was safe before. She had a team, friends even. And she nearly threw it all away again. She wouldn't repeat Robin's mistakes any longer. It was a new life, she was Blake Belladona now. Devil Child no more. "I suppose you can say that."

"Quite." Goodwitch nodded. "I originally came to make sure Mr. Arc and Ms. Xiao Long made their way back to class. However, since you are awake plans have changed." Class that's right. The struggle of being a student… Who had learned most things taught in a classroom before she was 8 years old. But at least there would be more time to spend with her team while not fighting. Speaking of…

"That reminds me, where's Ruby and Weiss?" Yang's eyes turned a blazing crimson at that. Jaune merely looked away, though one could clearly see his grip around his lighter in his hand was bone white. Franky crossed his arms, though he too didn't look pleased.

"Ruby's injuries were…" Goodwitch began to speak, trying to find the proper words.

Fear. Blake could feel its icy tendrils creeping on her mind. What happened with Ruby? Was she alive? No no no no no. This wasn't supposed to happen. She was supposed to sacrifice herself for her friends, not the other way around.

"She's alive, if that's what you're wondering." Franky grunted. "You're welcome by the way." He ignored the glare Goodwitch sent his way. "Sis got messed up too. They flew the old man in to do some repairs on her before bringing her back to Atlas." He sighed, looking up at the ceiling. "Man, I really do owe Doc. P for this one huh? Saving my family and some random girl." Yang punched him in the shoulder at that.

"She isn't some random girl, metal face." Yang snorted.

"She's our friend." Blake finished, Jaune nodding off to the side.

"Whatever she is, she's on an Atlas Bullhead right now receiving medical attention." Franky said, shrugging. "Dunno how long she'll be out, but… She'll be fine." A somber smile crossed his lips as he looked to Yang. "Little siblings can't go out before the older one. It's like… a law of the universe." That got a smile out of the blonde girl.

"Thank you." She said, her tone sincere. She hadn't gotten to know Franky well since he had joined their group. He was a breath of fresh air, and his goofy antics lightened the mood while they waited on their friends to recover. Though for how cheerful he was, he was tight lipped about his past; which did make it hard to trust the hulking, self admitted android.

"As Mr…"

"Franky, and you can drop the Mr., Ms…"

"Goodwitch." The glasses wearing blonde said.

"Huh Torchwick's name for you was spot on." Franky said, cupping his chin. "Good on ya." He aptly ignored the glare Goodwitch sent his way, prompting Yang's cheeks to puff up before biting her tongue, less she laugh at the display.

After all, it wasn't every day someone marched to their death.

"Moving on…" Goodwitch grit out. "As _Franky_ had said, Ms. Rose is aboard an Atlas Bullhead receiving treatment from their doctors. What your uncouth friend failed to mention," Franky grinned at her description of him. "Was that Professor Ozpin requested the doctors for Ms. Rose."

"Ms. Goodwitch can you take us to her?" Jaune asked, only his worry of his friend's condition keeping him from bursting into a love hurricane. There was a time and a place for everything, but not now.

Goodwitch shook her head, the blonde witch hanging her head momentarily. "I cannot, children. Believe me-"

"That wasn't a request." Blake cut her off, her arms already raised and crossed.

"Please, do you really think I'm Professor Ozpin's assistant for just my looks?" Goodwitch scoffed at the reincarnate. "You're not the only ones with the power of the old world," She said, her gaze falling on both of the reincarnates and the rebuilt android. "As you have come to realize."

"Are you…"

"I am Glynda Goodwitch, and as far as I know that is the only life I have lived." Goodwitch said. Pushing her glasses up with a huff. "And what I also know, is if you walk onto that ship… Well Mr. Franky and Mr. Arc likely would not survive. You as well, if they were to learn your origins."

"We'll worry about it later." Jaune said with a grunt. "Yang, do you know where it is?"

"Yeah?" Yang said, her tone questioning. Her gaze lingered on Goodwitch who was still in the room. "Kind of hard to miss where they parked the hulking giant ship. Not like I could get in." The lilac eyed blonde said with a smirk.

"You feel like dropping in and saying hello to your sister." Yang only grinned at that. The two blondes moving towards the door. Jaune sent a look back at his robotic acquaintance.

"Count me out." Franky said, crossing his massive forearms in an x in front of himself. "I'm barred from any Atlas military shit. Me and Penny snuck here on a ship I rigged up."

" _I_ am coming too, Mr. Chef." Blake said from her position in her bed. Her eyes widened when Jaune shook his head.

"No you are not young lady." Goodwitch said, glaring at her. Before Blake could speak up, Goodwitch pointed her riding crop at the _physically_ younger girl. "I don't care how old you were as Nico Robin. Right now you are a student of Beacon. And as your professor I will not let you participate in this foolishness."

"She's right Blake-swan." Jaune said, nodding with a serious look on his face. "If you got hurt again…"

"Wow lady killer, should I feel jealous?" Yang teased, prompting Blake to blush and Jaune to smirk. In their past life she never really thought about Sanji that way, they were nearly 10 years apart. However now they were the same physical age, and if he was anywhere near as built as he was in the past…

"I got love to go around." Jaune said, rounding on Yang with a grin. "I'd be happy to show you on the way, lovely Ms.-YaCK! I'll be good!" Jaune's love hurricane was killed in infancy by two miniature arms appearing on his thighs and grabbing his boys… Less than gently.

Satisfied, Blake uncrossed her arms. She didn't know if Yang would have taken him up on his offer or not.

"L-let's go." Yang said, biting on the inside of her mouth to contain her laughter. It did not work. "We don't want the doctors to do any gender reassignment." At that she lost it, because Jaune bolted out of the room with a look of otherworldly fear in his eyes. Yang was a little confused at that, since they were supposed to leave together.

Blake on the other hand was beside herself with laughter.

—

Once Jaune had met back up with Yang at Team RWBY's dorm they had started walking to the Bullhead. Their walk was far from silent, the two blondes cracking jokes all the way from the dorm to the courtyard.

"You know Jaune, something's been bugging me." Yang said, causing him to pause for the beautiful blonde to ask her question. "Why did you run away from home?"

"Eh?" Jaune asked, unsure how to respond.

"I mean, ugh." Yang scratched the back of her head. "I don't know much, but you and Blake sound like you lived on the run most of the time. Why would you throw away your family, peace? I don't get it." Yang hung her head to hide the now crimson coloring in her eyes. "How can someone do that?"

Jaune took a moment. He could tell Yang had something she wanted to get off her chest, though he had hoped it clothing not emotions, and a part of him knew this wasn't about him. "Well… I guess blood and all that junk doesn't make a family too me." Jaune said after some time. "My father was a right bastard in my first life. I cut all connection with them the second I could." Jaune said, referencing the Vinsmoke and more importantly Judge. "I didn't know what family was for a long time. Not until that Straw Hat wearing idiot messed up the restaurant I was working at."

"So why-"

"Because," Jaune sighed. " _They_ are my family." He said, referencing the Luffy. "And I could feel it in my soul, they're around too. And I gotta find em."

"You know…" Yang chuckled, shaking her head after getting over Jaune's words. "I was expecting you to say you ran off to Vale with some girl who dumped you."

"Yang, I'm a hopeless romantic… Not an idiot." Jaune gave her a light scowl before the two burst out laughing again.

Maybe Yang never would truly understand the bonds of that crew, and what drives them. But at least in her heart she could say she trusts Jaune and Blake, at least a little.

"A romantic hm? Then why are you still single?" Yang teased, causing the swirly brow'd blonde to wince.

"Yang I was 21 when I died." Jaune chuckled, "Even though it's a new life… Well I haven't really felt like a kid, ever." It would have been too awkward for him, especially before Beacon. Besides Blake, who it would be somewhat weird with for entirely different reasons, everyone his physical age was not his real age. It also made it hard as a child to try to impress women, who laughed off his attempts.

Huh, that sounds a lot like Sanji's whole life, now that Jaune thought about it.

"I mean that's fair." Yang said with a shrug, her lilac eyes narrowing ever so slightly. "I don't mind them older, lover boy." She said with a seductive smirk.

And that ladies and gentlemen, was enough to send Jaune into a true love hurricane, the likes of which the world hadn't seen since Sanji. In mere moments we are about to witness the…

"Yang-swann!"

And liftoff.

Yang shook her head as she watched the suit wearing blonde get launched away by a stream of blood coming out of his nose. That brought her back to when they had first got to Beacon. Only a few months had passed, however so much had changed.

Jaune and Blake were pirates with super powers. Jaune's dad had crazy powers too. Blake was also a Faunus. And of course the docks.

At least they didn't have to deal with any normal high school crap like bullies.

"Pffft…" Yang couldn't contain her laughter at that thought. Bullies? Yeah right. Jaune would immolate anyone who touched the girls, that was if it wasn't Ruby. Yang had first dibs in that case.

Poor poor Russel, he should have known better.

"Wellp!" Yang clapped her hands together. "Time to go find my sister." She said as she walked over to where Jaune had landed. She chuckled at her fellow blonde, who was lying in a pool of his own nose blood. "Come on lover boy." She said, placing her hands on her hips.

"urghhh…"

"Yeah yeah, gurgle gurgle to you too." She grumbled, pulling Jaune to his feet.

"Urk! I'm up!" Jaune yelped, the force shaking him from his stupor. "Damn Sanji I might become anemic thanks to him." He grumbled, causing Yang to chuckle at his misery.

—

Jaune didn't know what to expect when Yang led him to the Atlas Bullhead. Truth be told he didn't know much about airships, or the kingdoms in general. Cutting class would do that to you. So when he and Yang walked up to see a squad of heavily armored men guarding the flying ship… Well he did say they'd be breaking stuff.

 _"Halt. State your purpose."_ That… Wasn't a human voice. Jaune quickly realized he was clearly not talking to people, but in fact white painted robots with big guns. Those would hurt, probably.

"Guess I'm in the right place." He did not stop walking.

"Jaune, maybe you shou-" Yang began to speak, taking a few steps back. Hey she was all up for a little destruction of property here and there, however she didn't want to get mixed up with military bots. Those things cost a fortune, and she doubted she'd be getting off easy.

 _"Halt. Facial recognition… Error… Error. 76% match with:_ ** _Black Leg Sanji. Execute Clean Slate Protocol._** _"_

"Uh oh." Jaune gulped. Hearing that name was never good.

 _"Eliminate the pirate."_

"Uh oh!" Jaune yelped as he rolled out of the way of the spray of bullets. "Ow ow ow… Fuck why didn't I use Haki?" The swirl browed blonde grumbled to himself as he dusted himself off. However upon looking himself over he saw that while his suit was full of holes, his skin was perfectly fine.

"Right, Aura." Jaune said as he fished his pack of cigarettes out of his pocket. "You guys are lucky you didn't hit these." He said, pulling one out and placing it between his lips. He then pulled out a match from his pocket. Placing it in his hand, he flicked the tip of the match with the nail of his thumb to ignite it. He then lit the cigarette; throwing away the match as he exhaled a cloud of smoke."Then I'd be real mad."

He then blurred from sight, right as the Atlesian mechs opened fire on the spot he was standing on.

Jaune now high above the androids, began to spin in the air and gaining momentum as he fell. Before impact, he struck his leg out and activated his Armament Haki.

 _Ker-Krunch!_

The sound of high grade metal being crushed like a tin can brought a smile to Jaune's lips. He hadn't had a good robot fight since… Well since Sabaody! This was nostalgic for the blonde.

"You!" Jaune looked up from his mechanical victim to see a beautiful woman, who upon a closer look was very similar in appearance to the snow angel. The robots seemed to stand down in her presence. Guess she was the one in charge.

Jaune had to say, he did like a woman with authority.

"Me." Jaune said with a proud grin, pointing to himself. "I don't like fighting with women. So if you could just let me grab my friends that'd be great. I'll even cook you a five star meal." Jaune said, trying to sweet talk the cold woman into letting him pass.

"Ch, misogynistic pig." The woman scoffed. "You've destroyed Atlas Military property. Surrender now and your punishment will be lenient."

"Will you be the one giving it?" Jaune asked shamelessly. The woman shook her head in negative. "Well in that case… Nope!"

One mech raised its gun to open fire again, however its head was blown clean off. Behind it, Yang stood with her arm ourtstretched, and smoke rising from the barrel of her gauntlet.

"Sorry, but swirly here," Yang ignored Jaune's indignant shout at the mention of his eyebrows. "Doesn't hit women. Has a real white knight thing going for him." Yang then smacked her fists together. " _I_ don't have that problem."

"Do you know who _I_ am?" The woman scoffed, placing a hand to her chest. "I am Winter Schnee… And you just threatened an Atlas Specialist."

"Uh oh." Yang only had enough time to get her guard up before the woman blurred towards her, the white haired woman's sword now drawn and poised to stab Yang.

 _"That was Shave! And did she say Schnee?"_ Jaune thought with wide eyes. One problem at a time. Weiss's hot sister or cousin could wait. For now he had to figure out why Atlas knew those techniques. Did Ozpin teach them? Were they shaping to be a new World Government? These questions made Jaune wonder, and not about his usual thoughts.

"My sister's faster." Yang grumbled. A smirk spread across her face as Winter realized that Yang was able to catch the blade between her gauntlets. "And I'd like to see her." Yang's knee shot up, nailing Winter in the gut. **_"NOW!"_** She roared, her aura blazing around her like a living flame.

However something was wrong. Winter wasn't coughing or sputtering, in fact… Yang felt like she hit iron.

"My _brother_ …" Winter chuckled. "Hits harder." The Atlas specialist said as she raised her head. Icy blue eyes gazed into burning crimson orbs. The white haired girl's fingers twitched. Behind her, a white glyph formed.

The construct began to spin before what appeared to be…

"Oh that's just not fair." Yang groaned, seeing an Ursa appear before her, however the beast was colored white and blue as opposed to the more sinister black and red coloration.

Jaune who had just finished destroying the last of the mechanical soldiers whistled when he looked at the construct. "Can Snow Angel do that?" He asked Yang.

"Not that I'm aware of." Yang snorted, "You take the bear, I take the bitch?" She asked, getting a nod from Jaune.

Jaune easily weaved past Winter, his foot already reared back to crush the bear like Grimm construct's head. If it looked like a Grimm and acted like a Grimm, chances are it died like one too.

Planting his left foot in the ground, he begun to spin around like a top, a top that spewed flames. After about a few seconds of his spinning, Jaune's flame covered foot struck the Ursa construct.

It let out a roar of agony as Jaune's foot sunk deeper into its translucent body. However it quickly dissolved into particles of light. Jaune then smirked at Yang, lighting another cigarette as he prepared to hang back and watch his opposite fight.

"So you're the blonde on my sister's team." Winter said. "She told me you were strong. I suppose she exaggerated." That comment really got Yang's blood boiling. She was not one to be looked down upon, and the busty blonde brawler wasn't going to let this ice queen get the last laugh.

Fist meet air.

As Winter sidestepped Yang's headfirst charge, she chuckled to herself. "You're full of openings." The Atlas Specialist said, raising her sword to strike down Yang who had overextended.

"Yang!" Jaune's hasty shout was all the warning she got, however it was enough to drop into a clumsy roll before dodging another downward strike from Winter's sword.

Placing her palms against the ground, Yang let off a round from Ember Celica which propelled her up towards Winter to headbutt the Atlas Specialist.

Winter was someone who had trained to prepare for most fighting styles. She had not been prepared to get hit with a headbutt with that much force. Her head was spinning, thankfully her Aura took most of the hit; though it had definitely rung her bell. Though… Judging by the way her blonde opponent was staggering about, she wasn't the only one.

"Winter!" Wasn't that…

"Stay out of this, sister." Winter's icy blue eyes narrowed as she turned to face the person she was speaking to. Standing in the entrance of the ship was Weiss, who looked ready to jump in… But didn't know what side to take.

"Why are you fighting my friend? And Jaune?" Weiss asked, crossing her arms.

"That's cold…" Jaune muttered, the look of a kicked puppy on his face.

"Guess fire and _Weiss_ just don't mix." Yang snickered, getting a smirk from Jaune… And a groan from Weiss at the pun.

"Enough!" Winter shouted, stomping her heeled boot into the ground… Hard enough to crack it. That shut everyone up good. "You," She pointed her blade at Jaune. "Defaced Atlas military property."

"They started it, gentleman's honor." Jaune said, scratching the back of his head with a sheepish look on his face.

"Preposterous they would never," Winter scoffed mid sentence, "Attack a civilian without cause."

"Well they thought I looked like some criminal." Jaune said. "They even got my name wrong and everything. Whoever designed these shitty droids has got to be fired. They could be a safety hazard if they attack someone… You know who isn't as awesome as me." Was he bullshitting? Only the part about not being Sanji.

"Say I believe you…" Winter said through grit teeth. _"Why_ did you think it was a good idea to come to an Atlas military ship… _Uninvited?_ "

"Uh, to see my sister duh." Yang said, crossing her arms. She then sent a pointed look at Weiss. "What gives? No invite, ice princess?"

"I didn't know if they'd allow you in." Weiss huffed. " _I'm_ barely allowed in, and that's with being escorted everywhere. Besides I give you updates by Scroll."

"Pshh" Yang waved her off, turning her attention back to the eldest Schnee child. "So are you going to let us in, or am I gonna break your face… Then let _ourselves_ in." Yang said, smacking her left fist into her right palm, getting a metallic clang since her weapon was still active. Maybe that last hit knocked a few more screws loose, or she really did have that much bravado.

"You? Defeat me?" Winter let out an honest laugh at that one. "Ohohoho, that's a good one. Weiss I thought you said her jokes were terrible?" The specialist said to her sister, her smirk widening as Yang fumed.

"I suppose," Winter sighed, sheathing her sword. "That it would be far less troublesome to fill the paperwork for guests than for deceased students in another kingdom. Especially if our Atlesian Knight's" The elder Schnee then spun on a heel, walking back towards the airship. "Well? Are you two coming? Or would you like to explain to your professors what had happened here?"

The two blondes wordlessly followed the Schnee sisters into the Bullhead. Yang's eyes remained a blazing crimson their entire walk, and she still had her weapon active. Jaune on the other hand was chewing on the butt of his cigarette, which he had now smoked to nothing.

Something about this wasn't sitting right with him. He didn't know if it was the overall theme of white and blue in the halls of this Bullhead, the Atlesian Knights recognizing his past identity, or the beautiful lady Winter being able to use a Six Powers technique… Something about Atlas was giving him a serious Marine vibe.

Winter finally stopped at a large sealed white door. The others stopping short behind her. The Atlas specialist tapped a code into her Scroll and a mechanical click was heard before the door unlocked itself.

The room inside was very plain, aside from the medical equipment and bed in the center of the room. Lying there was Ruby, who other than some mild discoloration around her jaw and a black eye looked fine… That and the now silver streak running down her bang. They had gotten the girl out of her blood soaked and burnt clothes and into a hospital gown, the aforementioned clothing was sitting in a pile by her bed. The red cloak miraculously stayed perfectly in tact however.

It took everything Jaune had to keep himself from bursting into flames. He'd contain his outrage for now… He'd keep it buried, still burning like a smoldering flame… And then unleash his full hellish fury on Torchwick.

Yang on the other hand, did not have the near 30 years of combined life experience containing rage. Add in the fact it was her own sister, well…

"Yang!" Weiss cried out, "You have to calm down!"

Yang's aura flared out of control, taking the shape of a blazing flame. Though it began to coil and writhe, gaining more shape, almost draconian. The blonde's head was ducked down, her long hair shadowing her eyes. Tears dripped down her face past her grit teeth. If one could see her knuckles beneath Ember Celica they would be bone white from how tight they were clenched, and a faint trail of blood from her nails digging into her palms.

"Weiss, control your friend!" Winter shouted, right before an alarm blared, the room then was filled with a red light. "She's going to disrupt the ship!"

"You think I haven't tried?" Weiss snapped back at her elder sister. The sisters stared at each other, Weiss then blushed and gained a sheepish look. "Sorry…" 

"Y…Yang?" A weak voice was heard through the alarm. Yang immediately shot her head up, looking towards her sister. The blonde's aura calming down to a respectable level… though her eyes stayed red.

"Ruby?" Yang rushed over to her sister, though she was held back by Winter. "What're you-let me go!"

"She has multiple broken ribs. Do you really think a hug from you is the best idea?" The elder Schnee asked.

"I…" Yang's next words were cut off, thanks to a single finger impacting the back of her neck, hitting the pressure point just hard enough to knock her out and into Winter's arms.

"It took you long enough." Winter scoffed, looking at the new arrival.

Jaune on the other hand, he now knew why he had that bad feeling. It's called familiarity. And the man in front of him, well the resemblance to _that_ man was frightening.

He stood at an imposing height of 6'8, which was a little shorter than Jaune remembered but Jaune himself was also a little taller than he was in his past life. However the man's style was unmistakable… Just like Sanji's own.

Unlike most in the Atlas military, he didn't wear their uniform or any modified version of it. In fact, other than Jaune himself, he was the first Huntsman Jaune had seen to be wearing a full suit. While Jaune chose to add a little color with his shirts normally, this man wore an entirely black suit. The only color being his white tie.

The man had long wavy black hair and a goatee shaped oddly like a c, though Jaune wasn't one to judge with his swirly eyebrows. On top of his head was a black fedora with a maroon band.

"You know, you're lucky I was sent here with you." The man said with a lazy drawl, scratching the back of his head. "If it were just you, things could have gotten messy." The lazy look in the man's eyes were gone. Replaced with the look of a hardened killer. "Don't make me clean up your mistakes. I expect better."

"Yes… Sir." Winter said through grit teeth.

"What just happened?" Weiss asked, breaking the tension. Winter sent a glare at her younger sister, while the man merely looked over the new arrivals with a confused expression.

"Who are the kids?" He asked Winter, completely ignoring Weiss.

"The patient's sister and friends. They were present during the incident, sir." Winter explained.

"Oh?" He said, looking them over and stopping on Jaune. The man cupped his chin, staring at the swirl browed blonde for a few minutes. "… Do I know you?"

"Eheheh…" Jaune chuckled, "No?"

"Hm." The man snorted, moving away from the two still conscious students of Beacon. "Well, my name is Robert Steele, captain of Atlas's Specialist division." He said, "And to answer your question… Is my semblance, Ventriloquist." The man said, his voice almost monotone. "I can put my Aura into someone's body and speak through them."

"That… Isn't creepy." Weiss said, causing Jaune to snort in agreement.

"So Ruby didn't really wake up?" Jaune asked, glaring at the man. "That was a cruel trick to pull on such a lady." He said, referring to Yang.

"It calmed her down did it not? Or would you have preferred me to calm her down the hard way?"

"That's dark." Jaune chuckled, shaking his head. He knew he was about to take a gamble. But between Ruby's injuries and seeing him again, he didn't give a damn. "And you call it Justice?"

That. That got a reaction out of Steele. Though his mouth never so much as twitched, his eyes widened for nearly a second. "What was that?"

"Boys!" Winter said, calling their attention to her. Though for Steele it was mostly out of amusement. "It doesn't matter. The girl is recovering."

"Yeah?" Jaune asked, "I ain't a doctor… But it doesn't really look that way to me."

"Atlas has the best medical technology out of any kingdom." Steele commented.

"He's right." Winter affirmed the man's words.

"If that's all…" Steele said, tipping his hat to Winter before walking towards Jaune. The taller man then leaned down and whispered in Jaune's ear. "If I were you kid, I'd try to keep out of trouble." A feral grin crossed the man's face. "Otherwise we'll see if you can stretch as well as that rubber brat." He then patted Jaune on the shoulder before walking out of the room.

Jaune was left stunned. He played a gamble and it did not work out in his favor. It was really him, the Soldier of Darkness. Rob Lucci.

Damn he was glad Goodwitch wouldn't let Blake come with them. Did she have precognition or what?

—

Ozpin let out a long winded sigh as he heard his Scroll ring. He dreaded this call, though he knew it had to happen. With a bit of hesitation, he answered the call. Oh how he wished he had a cup of tea right now, it would be perfect to calm the nerves.

 _"Boy…"_ The voice on the other end of the line was low and smooth, yet somehow still his voice still seemed to rumble… Like a Volcano.

"Don't you start that with me, General." Ozpin groaned. "I had to expend more of my power in one night than in the last ten years. I am _not_ in the mood for your ego."

 _"Regardless… The recent attack in Vale was a grave oversight."_ The man on the other end sighed. _"Have you not seen the news? Your city is falling into disorder."_

"And what would you do about it? Immolate everyone who so much as jay walks? Worked real well last time, James." Ozpin snorted, giving the man on the other end of the line a sarcastic clap.

 _"If it would keep the peace."_ The man-James, said without missing a beat. His tone did not change at all.

"I won't let you."

 _"Then use my soldiers. My Atlesian Knights are as strong as our average captain back in the old days."  
_

"Might doesn't make right _General Ironwood._ " Ozpin said, his eyes narrowed into a harsh glare. "My _Huntsmen_ will deal with _my_ city. Understood?"

 _"Hmph, fine. But remember this, former Admiral Coby."_ Ozpin could swear the Scroll, and his office were getting hotter as the man spoke. _"One more mistake, and I will take action. With, or without your approval. Consider treating the Silver Eyed child a… Token of good will. Or a favor, that I will cash in."_ That was all Ironwood said before hanging up.

"Why… Did I ever try to use my powers before being able to clearly see who I was allowing reincarnating." Ozpin groaned, sinking his head down while pulling at his hair. "If I didn't make those mistakes… You and your family wouldn't be at such a great risk, Jaune. For that I apologize." Ozpin's eyes drifted towards a framed picture on his desk.

The picture was of him, John, Peter and Basilla… Taken right before that mission.

—

Johnathan was startled awake, his burly arms flailing in every which direction… Until he realized he was still lying in the back of the truck that the nice local had agreed to take him in.

Take him where exactly? Well To be honest he wasn't entirely sure. Ozpin contacted him about a week ago about a mission, something about a new cult that had sprung up. For a while, like most religious groups they weren't a problem… That was until they apparently began slaughtering villages wholesale.

They called themselves the Children of the Sky. Simple, dumb, almost elegant… If it wasn't a murderous cult, Johnathan would approve of the name. However they were, and he was hired to stop them.

Well, not really hired. Oz asked, of course he'd do a favor for his old pal… Especially busting some skulls. That fight with his little swirly brow'd shit of a son showed him how out of shape he was. Every day since he returned home from that fight with his son he had trained in earnest. Going out into the forest daily to test himself agains the Grimm.

The pickup truck suddenly came to a stop. Johnathan took that as his cue to sit up and look around. They were at the foot of one of the mountains located outside Vale. Not quite Mountain Glenn, but near enough for him to recognize some of the scenery.

The blonde man cracked his neck before heading up the trail of the mountain. For a normal human, the trail might have been dangerous, especially without Aura. However for Johnathan, who had his Aura _and_ Haki… Well He was a cut above the rest to say the least.

Getting to his destination was no challenge at all, it wasn't like they were the most subtle group. After all, a giant golden face lodged into the side of the mountain wasn't exactly the most discreet hideout.

Johnathan idly noticed that he stopped walking on wood and had stepped onto wooden planks, the old floorboards creaking under his weight. As he neared the top of the stairs he noticed that a group of robed figures were blocking his entrance into the mouth of the golden face.

Johanthan smirked to himself, that was fine with him. "You, you're first." He said, pointing at one of the hooded figures on the far left side. He then rushed forward, burying his armored fist into the gut of one of the men on the right, causing the man to double over in pain. "Oops I lied. You should never trust your opponent to fight fairly." Johnathan chided the men, easily dodging their attacks. He then reached towards his gauntlet and pulled on the handle, freeing his sword.

"I couldn't agree more." A deep baritone voice washed over the cliffside. The hooded figures stood down; which only made Johnathan tighten his grip on his sword. For some reason even with his Haki he couldn't sense the speaker. It was like he was flooding the area with his presence, which shouldn't be possible unless…

"Ch… Guess I really gotta thank the brat for that kick in the ass… Might just save my life." Johnathan said, a grin stretching across his face as he prepared himself to fight this new opponent.

 **That's a wrap on the chapter guys. First some recap, then everything else. It's been about a week since the SMILEY outbreak in Vale. Unlike in canon, where the destruction was contained, SMILEY split up across Vale. Shit happened that will be touched on in the next chapter or two. Blake had exhausted her Aura reserves and was heavily injured from combining her Semblance and Devil Fruit.**

 **Ruby on the other hand, well she got her ass kicked. I felt bad writing that scene honestly… Anyone feel bad for Roman when Jaune or Yang get their hands/feet on him? I thought the silver streak would be a nice touch, just as some permanent damage from her first _real_ fight. Roman is a hardened criminal and a bastard in canon… Without Haki or the Clima Tact. Let me know how you guys feel in the reviews, and who you want to fight Roman most.**

 **Speaking of Ruby, or well… Speaking of the man who spoke through Ruby, that was for Chronosign. They had won my game of guessing Ozpin's identity, though in PM. I was going to give them a Vytal Festival OC, but they requested Rob Lucci and he sort of wrote himself into my plans. Originally I was going to have him replace Clover, but I have other plans in mind for the Ace-Ops. His semblance is in reference to his long dead bird buddy Hattori and how he spoke through the bird when he was undercover in Galley-La. As for his Devil Fruit? Well you'll just have to wait and see to know if he still has it.**

 **There were two other reincarnate reveals this chapter. Though neither of them had their past name said so I won't reveal it.**

 **The scene between Ozpin and Ironwood was to hint at Jimbo's identity (duh) and also give a little background to Ironwood stepping in at the end of Volume 2. I always thought it was weird that he just did, true were there for Vytal but that was for Huntsmen. Hopefully I did it a little justice. What do you think?**

 **Oh and yeah, Johnathan is Johnathan Arc… In case there was any confusion.**

 **If you guys have any questions, suggestions, or really anything else just drop a review. Or PM, one of the two.**


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